


See all the stars

by Bemna



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Elias Being Elias, Friendship, Gen, Manipulation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2021-03-03
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:21:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 41,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25755034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bemna/pseuds/Bemna
Summary: The archives aren't the most popular or exciting place to work in the Jedi order but Jonathan Sims was happy with that. He didn't need excitement in his life, just answers.Too bad the force has other plans for him
Relationships: Background Martin Blackwood/Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Elias Bouchard & Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist, Jonathan "Jon" Sims | The Archivist & Everyone
Comments: 116
Kudos: 81





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My Star Wars knowledge comes from marathoning the movies every year, some clone wars and the wiki so if anything is wrong with the setting I'm sorry!  
> Also I adapted a few things to create a Jedi order that made sense to me and to make some tma dynamics fit

The Jedi Archives were, arguably, the most important part of the temple.  
An immense collection guarding the complete knowledge of the Jedi order.

For many, especially the younger generations of Jedi, this place was only useful for locating the next planet to swing their lightsaber in, only finding usefulness in the most superficial part of it. But Jon didn't feel that way, most of the time, surrounded by all of these documents he felt like all the knowledge in the galaxy was just at the reach of his fingertips. Most of the time however didn't mean all the time.

"Yes, Padawan Calek I assure you that those files are the ones you requested and that we don't have any more information on the Yurg'kan reformation translated to basic. That is everything" said Jon rubbing his eyes in irritation, this was the seventh time this Padawan had asked him the same thing and all of his attempts to explain anything to her were ignored.  
It wasn't the first time something like this had happened.

As the oldest Initiate in the Coruscanti Jedi Archives he had been tasked with helping Padawan and other Initiates, this job consisted in pacing around the archives, surrounded by numerous shelves filled with holobooks that softly illuminated the whole room with a blue glow looking for the documents the various people coming here requested and solving small problems that could arise.

The best part of his Job as an assistant in the archives was having unrestricted access to most of the information in the room. The worst was, of course, having to actually help the other Jedi who often liked to think that they knew more about his job than him.

"Are you sure Initiate Sims? Because-" The Padawan didn't get to finish 

"Yes, I am very sure, if you want more information on that topic maybe you should go to Yurg'kan and look for it yourself" snapped Jon, tired of repeating himself over and over again.  
The change in tone was noticed by the rest of the people in the library, who were now looking at what was happening with interest, the quiet background noise that normally filled the archives was now nonexistent. 

The young woman glared at him, offended, and dropped the documents on one of the tables.

"I was told that the Jedi working in the archives were supposed to be helpful" she said, her tone condescending.

"And I was told that Padawans were supposed to respect the wisdom of the more experienced" he answered in the same tone of voice. His dry response must have been interpreted as mockery because the Padawan seemed a lot more annoyed than before.

"You need to learn how to respect your superiors" she told him crossing her arms, her body language hostile.

"And you need to stop trying to teach me how to do my job!" He exclaimed, raising his voice and gesticulating wildly with his hands. At this the Padawan huffed, turned around and left, her steps echoing in the silence of the library. Jon felt every eye in the room on him as he put away all the materials the Padawan had left there and moved to another section of the archives. 

Now away from prying stares Jon sat down and breathed deeply. He needed to stop reacting like that, he had already been warned by Rosie that if he wasn't fit for this job then he would get reassigned elsewhere and he couldn't afford that, he needed to stay in the archives.

Jon stayed there for a minute, running his hand through his hair absentmindedly.  
Not noticing what he was doing until one of his hands grabbed a long strand of hair just behind his right ear. His former Padawan braid. He let go of it like it burned him.  
He abruptly stood up and checked the time, already tired of this. He still had two hours to go before the archives were closed to the public. Jon sighed and went to see if other people needed his help.

* * *

It was lunch hour at the temple so when Jon had entered the archives he knew that he would be alone. He didn't want to be disturbed.

After confirming that there weren't any more Jedi there Jon let out a deep breath and started browsing the shelves. He was so submerged in this task that when someone approached him from behind he didn't notice until they put a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.  
Jon let out a surprised scream and turned around almost dropping the files.  
When he saw who it was Jon relaxed. 

"You okay Sims?" Said Daisy, she looked well, not worse for wear than the last time he had seen her "You look like you've seen a ghost" she finished with an amused smile

"Y-Yes I just got ah, a bit startled" said Jon, still a bit rattled and put the files he had been looking at in their place "I didn't know you were back Daisy" he said, now smiling too and leaned back against the shelves, mirroring Daisy's position "I'm guessing you already talked to Basira" after her affirmative noise he continued "How was your mission?" 

"It was a bit of a bore to be honest, the place was already empty when we arrived so there wasn't a lot for me to do" answered Daisy a bit exasperated. She was one of those Jedi that really enjoyed fighting. Adrenaline junkies the lot of them in Jon's opinion. In Daisy's opinion, Jon had a bit of a stick up his ass, so the friendly teasing came out almost automatically.

"Oh, did the scary Jedi Guardian go there for nothing?" Said Jon with a smirk "What did you say before going to that 'oh so important' trip? Something about real Jedi going to real missions not just staying here looking at datapads?" Daisy huffed a laugh and gave him a small shove.

"Stop looking so smug Sims, at least I keep up with all of my duties and I know for a fact that you haven't been practicing your forms" Jon groaned in irritation, that was a discussion he had no interest in starting.

"I get enough of that from Sasha" he said recalling his conversation with that particular Padawan last week "You know that there is almost no chance that I will enter live combat. I work at the Coruscanti Archives for Force's sake and there is a lot more to being a Jedi than-"

"Yeah, than swinging your lightsaber around, I know Sims" interrupted Daisy, her tone was fond "But I also know that you've spent this three weeks locked in here so some exercise will do you good" 

"Who told you!?" Asked Jon, feeling betrayed. Did one of his friends convince Daisy to start another one of her kriffin "training sessions"? Last time he got roped into one he had been sore for a week

"Basira did, not that she needed to, because I know you Sims so go to the showers and we'll meet in training room 5 in half an hour, a standard hour this time, no pulling one of your 'technically this is an hour in Luzen' "

"Well, as much as it pains me to miss that monstrosity you call training I have an assignment in two hours"

"Something interesting?"

"Not really, just attending one of the Senate meetings, for the record you know? At least I talked them out of assigning me an escort" finished Jon with disgust

"If you keep slacking off your training you'll need one" answered Daisy in a light tone.

The sarcasm was heavy in Jon's voice when he answered "Yes because obviously there is a scary Lord of the Sith whose nefarious plans involve kidnapping a half trained Initiate in the most secure building in Coruscant" 

"Better safe than sorry don't you think? A real Jedi escort to protect the poor defenseless Initiate" Said Daisy.  
Jon knew that she was just teasing, they did that all the time but he couldn't help but tense up at her words

"That would make sense last time the escort hadn't been Master Burroughs' fourteen year old Padawan" said Jon putting a little bit of bite into his answer, by the look on her face she noticed.

"You're still mad about it?" Asked Daisy in a blank tone.

"Yes, I" he sighed "I was hoping people would just forget about it and take me a bit seriously you know? It's like they don't get that I do have the experience even if my training wasn't completed but I went from being the next chief librarian to being babysitted and patronized by every Padawan on their first mission" he couldn't help the frustration out of his voice. He looked away from Daisy, he was just being stupid.

"I could bring Sasha here if you wanted to talk to her" 

"No I- I don't really want that right now, I'll just stay here for a bit and see if I can find something to read I guess" he said dispassionately, 

"Okay"

"Oh you're staying?"

"You don't mind right?" Jon told him that of course he didn't and she continued "Basira was a bit busy so yeah, I don't really have a lot to do right now" After saying that she sat on a nearby chair, giving him the space he needed, letting him decide if he wanted to continue the conversation or just read with Daisy simply keeping him company. To many it was a surprise that they got along but in moments like this he could see how well they really understood each other.  
Jon smiled at her.

"Thank you Daisy"


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon meets very helpful and nice people that really care about his well-being. Everything is going fine

The assignment was just as he had expected. Extremely boring.

The Senate had a few platforms reserved to the public, in theory they existed so the anyone could access Senate meetings if they wanted but in actuality only the press and the occasional historian actually used them, of course that wasn't counting Jon himself who as a member of the Educational corps was expected to collect important information and bring it to the Jedi Archives.

This session about the election of the new chancellor was important enough that the Council of First Knowledge decided to send someone to document it for future reference so that was why Jon spent his afternoon recording the entire meeting and making the appropriate notes to research later, the Jedi working in the Archives would later decide what to do with the information. It was tedious work but he preferred this to having to deal with people consulting the archives, yes, he knew that the archives were there to be used but he wasn't really good with people on good days and some of the Jedi that visited the archives could be extremely frustrating.

The session finished and Jon quickly left the building, trying to look like he wasn't avoiding crossing paths with anyone.  
Jon wasn't a well known person in the Senate but there was always one politician looking for connections in the Jedi order and his clothing clearly marked him as a member.  
They Jedi were supposed to be separate from the Senate, servants of the republic. They weren't allowed to favor any senator over the other but the senators didn't seem to understand that, another thing they didn't seem to understand was the Jedi hierarchy or they wouldn't be trying to talk to him.

He walked down the less populated corridors and finally was able to leave the building successfully when he heard someone call his name. It was one of the senators.

"Jonathan Sims!" Said a cheerful voice "I haven't seen you in a while" Jon suppressed a groan and turned around forcing himself to hide the disgust that wanted to make its way into his face and instead adopted a polite expression. He knew that he was representing the Jedi order so he had to be perfectly polite to outsiders, specially if they were politicians. 

Walking towards him was a tall and broad human man that Jon couldn't recognize. but, since he had called him by name, he must have met before so he greeted him with a bow. 

"It is a pleasure to see you Senator"

"Yes, of course Jon! How have you been? You are looking so different from the last time I saw you" Jon was thrown off by the familiarity and frowned.

"I am sorry but I can't recall seeing you before" he said hoping he didn't offend the man but wanting to know why he would talk to him that way. 

"Oh, I'm Peter Lukas! We've met once or twice but normally I don't stay for conversation, I am very shy if you can believe me" answered the man with a jovial expression, the smile didn't reach his eyes. Jon couldn't help but feel a bit uncomfortable

"I see…" he said, not knowing what exactly the Senator was expecting from him. Normally when he didn't manage to avoid them these conversations were always just empty pleasantries or posturing but this familiarity was new.

"I wanted to greet your master actually! I haven't seen her around here and normally you two are always together. I just thought it was strange you know? If I recall correctly Padawan are supposed to be with their masters and you are awfully young to become a Knight already aren't you?" Jon couldn't suppress a flinch at the mention of his former master. He normally was able to control his reactions better but he had been caught off guard.  
"No, she isn't here, she-" tried Jon, but just as he managed to do that he was interrupted

"So I thought maybe something happened to her?" The man was still smiling, unbothered, his eyes were still empty.

"My master died six months ago in the line of duty" managed Jon, he felt vulnerable and unbalanced. He had to keep his composure, release his feelings into the force. He tried to take a deep breath to calm himself but the air was cold.

"Oh, that is terrible. You must be feeling very lonely without your master, how awful" he didn't sound sorry but that was to be expected right? He hadn't really known her like Jon had.

"No, we Jedi are trained to reject attachments. I won't miss her because I let go of those feelings. I know she is still alive in the force so I won't grieve her" that was how he was trained. It had to be what he was feeling, he was a Jedi.

"I see, being able to do that sounds very convenient" And the man was still talking and looking at him with his washed out blue eyes. Jon was done with the conversation

"S-so if that is all I must be going-"

"No, no I just wanted to ask you about another thing now that you are talking about Jedi traditions!" Said Peter taking a step closer to him "Six months is a long time to be without a master isn't it? I thought that when a tragedy like that happened the Padawan went to another Master! And here you are. All alone!" Jon gritted his teeth, took a step back, he didn't want to tell him anything more about himself.

"Sometimes older Padawan are asked to perform small tasks by themselves so seeing a Padawan alone in Coruscant isn't that strange" he said, trying to misdirect his attention, he was getting emotional. He had to leave. Jon bowed again and said his goodbyes "I really must be going so it's been a pleasure but I have to leave. May the force be with you "

"Oh don't let me keep you! I am sure you have very important duties to attend. And congratulations on your new master."

Jon turned around and started walking, leaving the strange man still smiling at him without another word and finally managed to get out of the plaza.  
He didn't see anyone else on his way back to his ship.

* * *

Jon didn't rush his flight back to the temple, still feeling cold. He knew that Jedi weren't supposed to feel like this. He took another deep breath, centering himself, recalling the conversation he had with the senator and thinking about how he had felt. 

He wasn't grieving the loss of his master, he was a better Jedi than that. He had to be a better Jedi than that.

He was just frustrated because of all the sudden changes, that was all, he had to get used to it and everything would work out. He wasn't grieving his master.

And he didn't need a new master, in fact, he didn't want one. He was better off this way, he now had more freedom than ever, of course the death of his master was sad but it was just how life worked, Jon had accepted that. 

He drove back to the temple between the thick traffic of Coruscant as the sun started to set to and the nightlights were turning on. The white smoke obscuring the top of the highest buildings reminded him of fog.

* * *

"-And then she just left, that was the last time I saw her. Maybe if I had payed more attention to her strange ramblings then this wouldn't have happened. I knew she had visions but it just sounded like nonsense. Strings and puppets… I didn't know what it meant, I couldn't have that's why I didn't tell anyone.  
But I should have listened to her.  
She had been so scared." Jon took a deep breath and inspected the folder one last time. No additional investigation. Maybe if he could just-

"Reading something interesting?"

Jon jumped and immediately tried to hide what he was doing, he lifted his gaze and met the eyes of Elias Bouchard, one of the Archivists working in Coruscant. His heart was leaping into his throat and he felt like Elias new exactly what Jon had been doing. Jon tried to defuse the situation. "Ah M-master Bouchard I am sorry I was just looking for some files ehm they told me t-to do some research about ah- um- a personal request to-"

"Really? At this hour?" asked the man, smiling. He was leaning against his table and put down the documents he had been reading. Jon couldn't help but sneak a glance at them. All of them were well above his clearance. 

He looked back at Elias. Maybe he could try to distract him, divert his attention from what Jon was doing. Jon was about to open his mouth to ask him whatever random question he could think of when Elias, without breaking eye contact reached out to take the file. As he paged through it Jon felt cold dread spread through his gut.  
A few seconds passed by before Elias made a soft sound of interest 

"Ah, the Leitner mission, a strange thing to ask an initiate to investigate"  
Jon had been caught, his throat felt dry and he started panicking.

"I am very sorry Master Bouchard, I won't do it again" said Jon trying to apologise, knowing it was hopeless but then the older Jedi looked at him again, his eyes were full of amusement.

"Don't worry, I understand" he said, going back to his reading "I won't tell your supervisor" Jon was stunned. He stayed there for a while, in silence while Elias finished the document. After a few minutes the Knight dropped it on top of the ones he had been reading and looked at Jon again. "I thought none of the files related to that mission were accessible to Initiates. Even to ones working in the archives" Jon kept his composure and answered him truthfully

"They are not supposed to be but this one was misfiled so I was able to take a look it" Elias hummed. He didn't talk for a few moments. Jon was the one to break the silence. "You were in that mission weren't you master Bouchard?" he asked, curious

"Yes but my account is in fact classified" answered Elias in a dry tone of voice. He started picking up everything on the table. Including Jon's document and his notes. Jon knew that Elias was being extremely benevolent with him, he did not punish him in any way and this was a very serious transgression after all, but he couldn't help but feel a pang of anger at seeing the Jedi Knight take away all of his research. 

Before walking away the Jedi Knight met Jon's eyes once again. "It's a shame someone as brilliant as you will never get to be more than an assistant in the archives" said the man. 

"Well, it is all I can aspire to be" Answered Jon. He felt a bit flattered but after the first two months he had resigned himself to the idea of never getting another master again, 19 standard was too young to take the trials but too old to be chosen again. Still, he appreciated the compliment.

"Oh, don't sell yourself short Jonathan, I think you would make a wonderful archivist"  
After saying this Elias left the library, leaving Jon stunned. The soft sound of his footsteps reverberating in the empty hallways while Jon wondered what exactly Elias had meant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the end of the introduction chapters! So next time the plot starts :)


	3. 14 (part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon has a nice day and is given a great opportunity

The hallways leading to the Padawan dormitories were empty. Jon knocked on the door of one of the Padawan dormitories and waited. After a few moments the door slid open silently and he was greeted with the confused face of Sasha James. 

"Jon?" Said Sasha "does master Górka want anything? I thought it was my day off, I was just about to leave" she finished, a bit annoyed. 

"No, it's nothing like that" denied Jon.  
"I was wondering if the invitation was still up?" He asked, a bit uncertain. She perked up and smiled at him

"You are coming? That's great! I thought you were going to be busy today" at this he made an annoyed face 

"Yes I thought so too but it seems like that is not going to be the case anymore" Jon sighed. Sasha looked at him, curious 

"What happened?" She asked but before Jon could answer she started talking again "No, wait. You can tell us all when we get there, I'm sure they will want to hear about it too, let's go" she started walking towards the exit and Jon hurried to follow her

"They? I thought only Tim was going. Is Georgie there?" He asked, catching up to her. Maybe she had commed him and he hadn't noticed but he could swear she had been busy today. 

"Georgie?" Said Sasha, confused "No, not her. It's Martin. I told you he was coming too" at this Jon rolled his eyes.  
Of course, Sasha saw this and decided to scold him.

"Come on, Martin is a really nice person, I'm sure that if you get to know him you'll change your opinion on him" said Sasha. Jon crossed his arms and scowled.

"I know him well enough, thank you. And even if he is a nice person like you say that's not the problem. He's only been working here for two months and I'm already tired of seeing him just wandering around. It's like the Order doesn't have any standards for Force's sake" He expected the most important organization in the Galaxy to only hire competent people and normally that was the case but Martin Blackwood was clearly the exception.

"You sound like one of those uptight Jedi that hate having non force sensitives work in the Temple" said Sasha looking at him accusingly

"You know it's not like that at all!" He exclaimed "He's just extremely unprofessional! Sometimes I think he doesn't know how to do his job and I shouldn't even be surprised because if closing a door is too difficult for him then maintenance must be unthinkable" he finished angrily. A knowing smile spread in Sasha's face 

"Ah" she said, laughing "I get it. This is about the mooka he let loose in the Archives" 

"It took me two hours to catch it!" Exclaimed Jon furious. It had been a terrible day. Rosie had just finished lecturing him about 'letting his feelings get in the way of his duties' and then a kriffin mooka was running around the archives and everyone was too amused or too 'important' to do anything about it so it became Jon's problem.  
Later he discovered that apparently Martin Blackwood, a new hire, had let it get inside the Temple. They were in Coruscant for Force's sake, this wasn't bloody Corelia wandering animals shouldn't be a problem.

"So you are taking your embarrassment out on him" concluded Sasha

"What? That doesn't make sense. I don't do that" protested Jon. Feeling flustered

"You totally do that. Remember that time with Melanie-" started Sasha. Jon felt his face heat up and immediately interrupted her.

"That doesn't have anything to do with this" he said, trying to end the conversation.

Sasha hummed and together they left the Temple, talking pleasantly.

A few minutes later they arrived at a tavern near the Temple. Looking around Jon saw Tim and Martin sitting on one of the tables. They were immersed in conversation. Martin looked, in Jon's opinion, a bit nervous and flustered. Tim was grinning from ear to ear, looking like the cat that got the cream.  
Eventually, as they were approaching the table Tim noticed them and started waving

"Finally the illustrious Jedi have decided to join us!" He greeted with a mock bow and a shit eating grin

Martin seemed incredibly happy to see them. "Oh! Hi Jon! You came!" 

"I am here too Martin" said Sasha, grinning and sitting at Tim's side so the only free spot left was besides Martin. When he sat down Martin gave him a strange look. Jon could feel his agitation.

Another thing Jon didn't like about Martin was that he acted weirdly towards him. Martin was always perfectly polite but Jon could feel the nervousness rolling off him in waves. 

Jon always tried to close off his senses, snooping around other people's feelings was hardly polite after all and normally he didn't have any problems with this. Most of his friends were other Jedi after all and they had strong mental shields and controlled feelings by default. Georgie always felt calm, he had never been overwhelmed by any of her emotions. Even when he had been younger and less experienced in blocking other people's feelings that had never been a problem with her. Tim was much of the same, not broadcasting anything too strongly so Jon could easily block all of it. But Martin was extremely loud with his unease every time Jon was around him. 

Jon hadn't done anything to warrant this. Maybe he had shouted a bit after the mooka incident but he had apologized for that and he hadn't done anything else to make Martin feel so scared of him. He hated when he didn't know how to respond to things like this and gave him a hard look.  
Martin laughed nervously and, thankfully, drifted his gaze towards Sasha.

"Y-Yes I, sorry I just d-didn't know Jon was going to be here and uh of course it's nice to see you too Sasha I j-just… Sorry..." Martin stopped talking and took a sip of water, he was completely red-faced. Tim, for some reason, started laughing loudly

"Yeah, don't worry Martin" said Sasha smiling "What were you two talking about?" At this Martin choked on his water. Jon, alarmed, put his hand on Martin's back. Martin's nervousness spiked again and Jon put his hand away immediately.

"Are you okay?" Asked Jon, which, in turn, made Tim laugh harder. He glared at him and the laughing subsided. 

"Yes, I'm okay. Nothing is wrong" said Martin quickly "How was your last mission Sasha?" Accepting the change in topic Sasha started talking about her latest adventure and the conversation continued from there.

They ordered their food and talked for a while before the topic of Jon's presence resurfaced.

"So what happened? I thought you were busy with secret Jedi business" said Tim looking at him.

"I was doing some personal research but now I'm not, that is all" answered Jon trying to end the topic. He didn't want anymore trouble and involving them wouldn't do any good. He had felt bad enough when Daisy almost caught him yesterday.  
The problem was that Tim didn't care about any of this and without lowering his voice he said exactly what Jon was trying to hide

"So you were going to snoop around the forbidden Jedi files, again" concluded Tim, amused. He was too perceptive. 

"Really?" Asked Sasha "And you didn't invite me Jon? I'm hurt" she said with an exaggerated pout. 

"How d-? T-That's not- I- S-Should we really be taking about this now?" Stammered Jon in a hushed whisper sneaking a glance at the people around him. This tavern, being so near the Temple, was a really popular place for Jedi and there was always one in the establishment and Jon didn't want anyone hearing this. That wasn't even counting Martin who Jon still didn't trust enough for something like this.

"We know about it because we've caught you doing it before and Martin isn't going to say anything Jon" said Sasha exasperated

"O-Of course I wouldn't say anything" said Martin affronted. He looked sincere.

"So now that we've got out of the way you can tell us what is keeping you out of the fascinating world of dusty bookshelves" decided Tim. Jon relaxed a bit and leaned over the table, shortening the space between all of them.

"Well" continued Jon, now in a quieter voice "I finally found the document I was looking for and then a Knight showed up" at this Tim raised his eyebrows.

"No shit!" Said Tim incredulous "And they didn't expel you for it? Who was it?"

"It was master Bouchard" answered Jon "and he didn't do anything. He just took all my things and left?" He said, a bit uncertain. It had been a weird experience and Jon was still a bit worried about Elias changing his mind but so far nothing had happened.

"Without giving you a lecture?" Asked Sasha "Like 'this is the last time I let something like this slide' nothing like that? What did he tell you?" She looked surprised

"No? He just asked some questions about it and said something about how I would make a good archivist. It was kind of weird" answered Jon. Elias wasn't acting like he had expected but he wasn't going to look at a gift horse in the mouth. Sasha looked thoughtful.

"He said that?" She asked. After a moment she smiled conspiracionally at him "Maybe he wants to take you as his Padawan"

Now it was Jon's turn to look shocked  
"What? No, I'm too old for that"

"Well" she said biting her lip "that was a very specific compliment to say to an initiate, right? And I've seen him around. He's really uptight, I don't think he likes children and he doesn't talk to the initiates at all. He's always nose deep in some datapad so if he approached you it must have been for a reason"

"I think you deserve it Jon" said Martin looking intensely at him.

Jon started thinking about it. It was true that Elias wasn't the most social Jedi of the Order. Jon only knew his name because he had seen him at the Archives a few times but before yesterday he hadn't talked to him outside of the normal pleasantries. It couldn't be possible could it? But his last master hadn't been really demonstrative of her intentions of taking him as her Padawan before doing it. Maybe he had been too young to notice?

The conversation trailed off again but Jon wasn't paying too much attention now, still thinking about the possibility of being a Padawan again. 

As they were finishing their meals and Tim talked about the latest planet he had visited they were interrupted by a small child in Jedi robes approaching his table and bowing.

"Excuse me" he said "I was told I would find Initiate Sims here?" Everyone on their table stopped talking and looked at him. Sasha and Martin seemed a bit alarmed

"That is me, yes" he said hiding his nervousness

"The council of First knowledge requests your presence Initiate Sims. I will take you to them" answered the kid. Which was exactly what Jon didn't want to hear.

"Oh, someone is in trouble" said Tim, the only one still keeping his composure. Sasha elbowed him

"Of course" said Jon getting up "ehm sorry but it seems like I have to go"

"Yeah, we'll talk later Jon" said Sasha

"May the force be with you Jon!" Said Martin.

* * *

Jon followed the small youngling to the Council meeting room. They stopped in front of the door. Jon buried everything and braced his mental shields, his expression was stone cold. He could do this 

"We are here" said the kid, Jon had forgotten to dismiss him so he was still waiting and looked at him. Jon noticed that he seemed a bit intimidated so he softened his expression

"Yes, thank you for your help. You can go" he said. The kid smiled at him, bowed and left, leaving him to deal with the Council. After taking a deep breath Jon opened the door and entered the room.

The Council meeting room hadn't changed from the last time he had seen it when he had been assigned to work in the Archives. He bowed deeply and tries his best to look professional

"Masters" he said politely

"Initiate Sims" greeted the head of the council "we wanted to ask you if you were settling in well with your new duties"

"Of course, I am very thankful for the opportunity of working in the Jedi Archives" answered Jon, relaxing a bit. It didn't look like this would be about what happened last night but he still didn't lower his guard completely.

"That is good to hear" acknowledged another council member "However we have heard from many of your masters that you do not enjoy your role of assistant and we have records of some incidents involving you and you yourself have complained about the kind of work you do here" Jon felt his palms dampening with sweat. Was he going to be reassigned? Would they make him leave Coruscant to some other library in the middle of nowhere? He breathed and buried his feelings. He couldn't show fear.

"It is true that I had a difficult time adapting at first masters but I will not let something like this happen again. Even if I occasionally have problems interacting with the public I am willing to improve and I enjoy my work in the Archives." Said Jon, managing to keep his tone respectful and hide his insecurities.  
The Council looked at him intensely and Jon kept his composure. Finally one of the masters talked again.

"We have come to the conclusion that keeping you in the archives is a waste of resources, after all you were chosen as a Padawan and apprenticed for several years. Furthermore you have complained about our lack of trust in your abilities so we have decided to give you the opportunity to do some fieldwork for the Archives" 

Jon felt overjoyed. Ignoring the visits to the Senate he hadn't done any fieldwork since his apprenticeship had ended. 

The head of the council kept talking

"You will be heading to planet Eothel.  
There is evidence of a lost research station that an archivist wants to investigate. He has requested help because of the suspected volume of information, but it was decided to only send one researcher with the rank of knight or higher so you will be helping him"

This seemed like a really important mission and Jon was extremely thankful for the chance. If he could do this maybe he could start doing better work, investigating more. Maybe even earn the rank of knight eventually.

"Thank you for the opportunity, Masters" he said sincerely for the first time since entering the room. Master Rosie looked at him fondly

"You also will be accompanied by a newly formed Master Padawan team but their mission will be separate from yours, their purpose is to escort you there and deal with any problems that may arise. We don't expect any combat since this planet is firmly in republic space and the route is relatively safe. You will be notified of additional details and the departure will be tomorrow at 7:00 hours" Jon absorbed all the information about this mission with excitement. He wanted to know as much as possible

"If I may ask masters who will be the knight leading the mission?" Asked Jon trying to see if he was familiar with the Jedi he would have to aid. He was answered by another Master

"Elias Bouchard, he has requested you personally so I trust that you are familiar with him" Jon was at a loss of words and simply nodded, stunned. After a moment of silence the council dismissed him and Jon left. He walked down the numerous hallways towards his dorms, feeling so happy and excited. 

Sasha has been right. She had been right. This had to be some sort of test to see if he was worthy of being Elias' Padawan. He could become a Knight and learn so many things. If he could impress master Bouchard he would be back to where he was before all of this. They would be a Team. He could become a Jedi archivist , have access to the Archives and go to any planet he wanted to investigate, search for all the secrets hidden in the Galaxy. Learn about the dark and how to fight it, learn more about the force and its how's and why's.  
Jon was determined. The Force was giving him an opportunity and he would not waste it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know if I should tag the fic with Jon/Martin because it DEFINITELY won't be the focus and I don't want to bait people into the fic? 
> 
> Also about the chapter. I wonder why the council would suddenly notice all of this and immediately send him in a mission. I'm sure no-one is behind this, not at all.
> 
> I also decided to change the name of the planet because originally it was a reference to a place that appeared in Tma but I don't feel entirely comfortable using the name of real life actual places where people live in my fic just for a reference so now this new planet doesn't have anything to do with any place on Earth at all. Sorry!


	4. 14 (part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon has a terrible, no good, very bad day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to change the name of the planet because originally it was a reference to a place that appeared in Tma but I don't feel entirely comfortable using the name of real life actual places where people live in my fic just for a reference so now this new planet doesn't have anything to do with any place on Earth at all. Sorry!

Jon was having a terrible day

It had been more than an hour since he had left the Temple. The ship took off and Jon was expecting an easy journey. He thought Elias would want to get to know him and talk about his work but instead the only conversation that could be heard in the ship came from Master Bilham and Padawan Brodie sitting in the back.  
Elias and him were trapped in a very uncomfortable silence. They sat in front of each other and Elias looked at Jon intensely, without saying anything, an unreadable expression on his face. It was getting on Jon's nerves.  
Jon looked away, feeling uncomfortable. He didn't know what Elias wanted him to do. 

After leaving the Council meeting room his friends had grilled him with questions and given him a lot of encouragement and advice. They told him that this would be easy. He just had to arrive there, help master Bouchard with whatever he needed and then he would come back to Coruscant to earn the title of Padawan. But it wasn't going well and he doubted it would get better.

One of the problems he was noticing only now was that he now realized that he didn't exactly know what an archivist did. They were supposed to retrieve, organize and store new knowledge to help the Archives grow but how exactly did they do that? Were they going to just take everything from the abandoned research station? What would Elias expect of him? Would he just carry the documents and follow him around? His master had been a librarian so his work before being tossed into the corps had consisted mostly in managing the Archives and visiting other research facilities. After that it had been assistant work and small assignments in Coruscant that were too unimportant to waste the time of a real Jedi.  
Jon lifted his gaze again. Elias was still looking at him. He tried to start a conversation, maybe he should just ask him about the mission. He cleared his throat and tried to use his most respectful tone.

"Master Bouchard, what will my duties be during this mission?" Asked Jon. Elias' expression didn't change.

"I was assuming the Council had told you" he said, voice neutral and avoiding to tell Jon anything useful. He was starting to get tired of the man.

"No, they only told me I would be assisting you" a bit of frustration slipped in his tone. Elias raised an eyebrow, a corner of his mouth lifting and Jon felt chantised, he couldn't do this now. Even if he didn't like this he had to put up with it he couldn't ruin everything with his temper. Jon tried to relax and waited for Elias to answer. He didn't. 

"What does an archivist usually do?" Asked Jon trying to keep the conversation going. He saw something pass through Elias' face, too fast to see exactly what it was.

"Well, as an archivist I usually stay in Coruscant to preserve and organize information sent by other researchers but sometimes I request to be sent on data retrieval missions like this one" Answered the man

"I see…" said Jon, trailing off. He tried to think of something to say "I've been asked to bring recordings of the Senate meetings to the Archives before. Will it be similar to that?" It sounded similar, just recording the information and bringing it to Coruscant. Maybe this would be easier than he thought.

"Don't they use droids for that?" Asked the Knight with a small smile. Jon felt his cheeks burn and stopped asking questions.

He didn't say anything else for the rest of the flight.

* * *

They finally arrived at Eothel at night. Jon wasn't exactly thrilled about this but it was necessary.  
Eothel was completely covered in ice. At night the layer coating the globe became thick enough to support any ship. Luckily, nights lasted roughly half a standard year so they didn't need to rush the mission. They came here now specifically so they could navigate the surface safely without the risk of losing their ship to the freezing water.

Jon left the ship and looked around. He'd never been on a planet like this one before. Everything felt strangely still. There wasn't any source of light as far as the eyes could see, only the stars and the soft glow of their ship's machinery. Right now they were at the coldest place on the planet and they were alone. He couldn't feel any other lifeform. After being raised in Coruscant it was a really strange feeling.

The Padawan walked after Jon to stand beside his master who was watching Elias with interest.

"Where do you wish to go?" He asked politely. Elias didn't turn to look at him, he was facing forward. His eyes searching the darkness while he turned on a big lantern.

"The facility should be further out, I don't know what state it's in and I don't want to damage it by accident" said Elias. He started walking, looking at a holographic map.

Jon followed behind him, a bit hesitant. The other two Jedi tailing them. He was trying to get used to the small amount of light but the darkness seemed almost solid and imprenetable. The lantern only illuminating a few steps in front of them. As they walked every step buried them in the snow.

The more they walked the more Jon's discomfort grew. Jon wasn't stupid. When he learned what kind of planet this was he knew it was going to be cold but he was finding out that one thing was knowing about something and the other was actually experiencing it. The wind was howling and snow fell relentlessly on them. His clothes were getting damp and he was absolutely freezing. To add more fuel to his bad mood Elias was completely ignoring his presence. Why did he bring Jon here in the first place if he was just going to ignore him? If he wanted to see how Jon would fare without any instruction from him the answer was clearly very badly because Jon had no idea what he was doing here.

This was the worst mission he'd ever had to take and if all of them were going to be like this one maybe staying in the corps would be the wiser choice after all. Maybe Elias wanted to discourage him? Some sort of lesson for the uptight initiate that didn't respect authority? Knowing his luck it could very well be the case.

For a few minutes they just walked through snow and shadows, guided by the lantern and without saying a word. The only sound Jon could hear was the wind and the crunching of their boots against the thick snow.

Finally, Elias stopped. They were in front of what looked like an enormous metal structure encased in the ice. Elias ran a hand through the door and gave Jon the holomap. Jon stood there, holding it while the older Jedi ignited his lightsaber and melted some of the ice with the blade, careful not to damage the door.  
The rest of them waited in silence until Elias forced it open for them. 

"We shouldn't be out here for too long. Get inside" said master Bilham, pushing Jon and Callum into the building. Elias stayed outside, inspecting the control panel with a look of concentration on his face.

"I need a moment to see if the system is still functional." he said. He set the lantern on the floor and kneeled besides the control system. Jon didn't see how that would be useful. Like everything in this kriffin planet it was covered in ice and snow. It had probably been useless for a long time. At least Jon was now inside a building and not in the process of freezing to death so that was good.

"There is another panel here" commented the Padawan walking towards said object.

Jon was too preoccupied rubbing his arms to regain a bit of warmth to pay a lot of attention to what anyone else was doing. So, when a resounding clang filled the room and a complete darkness engulfed all of them, Jon was startled. He let out a surprised shot and looked around in panic. He couldn't see anything.  
Before he could do anything the hiss of a lightsaber filled the room and a soft blue light illuminated his surroundings.  
Master Bilham had ignited his lightsaber and was looking at his Padawan with a disappointed expression.

"Callum, I know you are new at this but we are on a real mission. You can't do things like this. It's dangerous"

"But I didn't touch it!" He protested, raising his arms in consternation.  
Jon's heartbeat, that had been beating like a drum on his chest, started settling as he took a calming breath, analyzing the situation.

The metallic door they had used to enter the building was now shut and their only source of light, like the only person that wanted to enter the kriffin station, were locked out.  
Elias' voice came from the other side of the door.

"It must have malfunctioned" he said, his voice sounded muffled. At least he didn't seem angry "I can't get it open from the outside" Jon sighed. 

"We could just use our lightsabers?" Asked the Padawan

"We are assisting a research mission. We can't go around breaking doors this time Callum. Unless we don't have any other options we should not damage anything" lectured Bilham he still seemed a bit annoyed with his Padawan. He raised his voice to ask a question to Elias  
"Are you going to be all right out there?" 

"I should go back to the ship. Maybe see if I can get something to force the door open but I shouldn't stay out here" Answered the other man. He paused and then continued "Jon" called Elias. This was the first time since the start of the mission that Elias directed his attention towards him. Jon straightened up. "I gave you the map of the facility. You should try to look for another exit in the meantime. When you do contact me. Am I clear?"

"Yes master Bouchard" said Jon. He should be able to do that at least.


	5. 14 (part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mission goes from bad to worse

Jon walked along the small corridors trying to make sense of the map Elias had given him. He felt a little better now that he was inside the facility warming up and not just following Elias, wondering what he thought of him. He felt more relaxed.  
Master Bilham wasn't treating him like a burden either. After giving him a small flashlight he had encouraged Jon to take the lead and was now calmly following his directions alongside Callum.

Now in a better mood, Jon was determined to make a success of this mission. Even if Elias wasn't here and didn't care about him he would show the Council that he was able to do real work.

They traversed the facility, their footsteps echoing in the empty halls. Jon looked with fascination at the endless hallways and old, empty rooms that filled the place. It looked abandoned, the doors rusty and deteriorating and the halls old and dirty, some of them stained with a completely black substance that reminded him of petroleum. 

As Jon kept walking he looked at the map and frowned. He was supposed to be leading the group to an exit but the path marked by the map only seemed to lead them deeper into the facility. He stopped and looked back at the other two Jedi.

"I am not sure if the map is completely accurate" he said, feeling a bit embarrassed. The Master smiled at him reassuringly.

"Don't worry" he said "If we don't find an exit we can make our way back. We will break the door if we need to. We are just looking for other options"  
At this the Padawan perked up. Without looking at him his master kept talking. "Only if it is necessary and after that stunt you won't be the one doing it Callum" the Padawan was indignant.

"I told you it wasn't me!" He protested, angrily. His master gave him a level look and he crossed his arms in frustration.

They kept walking for a while longer in comfortable silence. Jon feeling at ease, watching his surroundings with interest.  
As they walked Jon absentmindedly noticed something.

The deeper they walked into the building the worse everything looked. If the corridors and visible rooms looked deteriorated, the ones he could see now were absolutely destroyed. Like something had gone around the place breaking everything. The doors that first seemed rusty were now completely broken revealing empty, trashed rooms with puddles of that strange dark liquid. Some of the walls looked damaged. He couldn't sense any danger but a feeling of unease started settling in him.

They took another turn. One of the walls was marked by deep slashes that reminded Jon of claw marks. He swallowed thickly.

"What is that?" Asked the Padawan, approaching it

The older Jedi was now walking closer to him. His lightsaber was still off but Jon could see the difference in his way of walking, more deliberate, paying more attention to everything around them.

"That looks deep" he said, touching the mark. A thoughtful expression on his face. He looked at Jon. "Did Master Bouchard tell you anything about the facility? Why it was abandoned? Or a timeframe?"

Jon tried to not look embarrassed and answered him "No, he didn't really tell me much. I am sorry. I really do not know" the Jedi hummed

"Don't worry" he said calmly "Maybe he didn't know" he looked at Jon again. Some of his nervousness must have shown on his face because he put a hand on his shoulder and reassured him "Right now I can't feel anything in here so whatever that was should be gone, we'll just have to be careful but we shouldn't find any trouble"

Jon nodded and they continued walking. He was looking at the map again, now more eager to get out of the place but still unsure if this was the right path to take when a faint banging sound started coming from far in the corridor. 

Jon moved the lantern, looking for the source. There wasn't anything as far as the light could reach. Just the same empty hallway. He closed his eyes and concentrated, feeling his surroundings.   
He exhaled softly. It was okay, master Bilham was right. There was only him and the other two Jedi here. 

This was an old building. There probably were some structural problems. Maybe even an old, abandoned droid malfunctioning. They were alone. 

He still couldn't help but feel a bit nervous. He tried to look discreetly at the other two Jedi.  
They didn't react much, just stepped a little closer to each other.  
Jon felt a bit inadequate, acting like a scared youngling just because he heard a strange sound. He was supposed to be demonstrating that he could be a great Jedi. He couldn't show fear.  
He kept going without saying a word.

He was still leading their group. Now at a slower pace, more hesitant.

Another bang resonated in the corridor, making Jon flinch. It was closer and louder this time, coming from an intersection on his right. He pointed the flashlight at it. Still nothing. Then, faintly, at the edge of the light he could almost make out a dark shape moving fast, in a blur. That had to be a droid. Jon stepped closer, trying to see it.

Then his flashlight flickered off and everything was dark.

He could hear the banging louder now, all around him. He couldn't see anything. The sound of breathing came behind him and Jon turned around. His heartbeat was loud in his chest.

Something grabbed him by the ankle and Jon fell. He screamed and tried to shake it off. The grip was strong and his kicks only met empty air. He felt himself be dragged across the floor. Desperate, he struggled harder, tried to find something to hold on but the floor was smooth.  
An idea finally got through his panicked mind. He still had his lightsaber.

A green glow illuminated the corridor. Jon twisted, trying to see what was behind him. But there was nothing. He was alone. The other two Jedi weren't there.   
Jon stood up as fast as he could and looked around.

"Master Bilham?" He said, his voice sounding very small "Padawan Brodie?"

There was no answer. He couldn't see or hear anything else. He couldn't sense anything else. A chilling thought occurred to him. If he couldn't feel their presence that could only mean one thing. 

"Please?" Asked Jon. Feeling scared. They couldn't be dead. Could they? That didn't make any sense. They had been right there just a moment ago. Everything was happening too fast and Jon's head was spinning.

Then, at the edge of his vision Jon saw something moving. He turned to face it and his breath caught.  
It was an enormous shadow, circling him.   
Making loud clicking sounds. He still couldn't sense anything but something was definitely there.

The grip on his lightsaber started to tremble. His mind racing with panicked thoughts. This was impossible. It couldn't be happening. If he couldn't feel it it couldn't be there. This thing wasn't a droid, he should be able to sense it. And he was still alone. He didn't know if the others were even alive. He really didn't want to think about them being dead. 

As the noise started getting closer Jon's whole body started shaking. He wasn't used to missions like this. He shouldn't be on a mission like this and he didn't even know where Elias was. Why had Jon decided to come here? He should have stayed at Coruscant. It was his fault that the other two Jedi were here in the first place. If Elias had come alone they wouldn't be there. They could be dead because of him. Just like his master. 

A loud clang resonated through the walls and Jon stifled a sob. He couldn't do this. He couldn't let himself panic.  
He tried to push his fear down. Now it wasn't the moment to feel guilty. He had to focus on what was in front of him. 

Jon spread his feet out and tried to calm his breathing. He was going to stand his ground. He couldn't let old fears control him. Jedi didn't let themselves be led by their emotions.  
He gritted his teeth and pointed his lightsaber at the thing, still waiting in the shadows, but just close enough to the light that Jon could see where it was.   
It wasn't moving now and Jon tried to make out the shape of it. Looking closely he could recognize something. A huge round body. Thin articulate legs. It looked like a spider.

Jon felt his stomach drop and ice spread through his veins, he took a step back. The thing. No, the spider, because of course it had to be a spider, moved forward.  
Jon ran away down the corridor, deeper into the building.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mean... I tried? I'm not really happy with the action scenes it's the first time I try something like this.
> 
> In other news. If you are wondering why Bilham is suddenly acting so nice towards Jon imagine that you are a Jedi master, see this kid obviously trying to impress a knight and your Padawan fucks everything up... He feels kind of bad for Jon


	6. 14 (part 4)

Jon leaned on a wall, trying to rest for a moment. His lightsaber was still alight in his hand.   
After calming down Jon held his breath, trying to listen to his surroundings. The only sound he could hear was the hum of his lightsaber. 

Jon exhaled deeply. It had been a few minutes since the last time he had heard the spider. Now it seemed like a good time to get his bearings.  
Jon immediately reached for his belt, trying to take out the map of the facility. His hand met empty air and Jon froze. It wasn't there. Now, more alarmed, Jon looked again. Still nothing.  
Realization came through his mind, stealing his breath, he didn't remember putting it away. He must have lost it when he fell to the floor. He didn't know the way out. 

A small, rueful laugh escaped his lips. He should have felt more horrified at the realization. He should have panicked, but he was so tired of this, this was the only thing he could manage at the moment. He felt his control slip, his laugh increasing in volume as he tried to hold back his tears.

He looked down at the empty space in his belt again when something else caught his eye. He still had his comlink.

An idea occurred to him. Making his breath catch. Elias was waiting for Jon to contact him and should be safe inside the ship. He still had a way out. With trembling hands he activated the device and started talking.

"Master Bouchard, t-this is Jon" he paused, there was only silence on the other end "Are you there?" asked Jon, he waited but again, there was no answer. He started talking regardless "I-I need help" he said. His voice was shaking "Something's happened. There's-" His breath quivered, Jon tried to even his tone "there's something here and I don't-" Jon closed his eyes "I don't know where the other two are, everything has gone wrong" his voice was small now, barely a whisper "I don't know what I should do" finished Jon

A long moment passed and Jon just waited for something. Some kind of signal to show him that someone was listening to him but, there was nothing.

"Are you even there?" Said Jon, desperate "Can you hear me?" He asked, the silence was almost deafening and Jon didn't want to keep doing this anymore "Master Bouchard?" Asked Jon one last time. It was useless. Jon was completely alone. He put his back against the wall, fighting back tears as numbness spread through his body.

For a moment Jon thought about giving up, about just staying there, waiting for that thing to find him. He wanted to sit down, to stop running and let it happen. Turn off his only source of light and accept the darkness trying to suffocate him.

But he really didn't want to die.   
Jon straightened up again. His hand gripping his lightsaber painfully tight. If he was going to die he would at least die trying. He would do his best to find an exit.

Jon kept moving. He was running again now, not knowing where he was going. Passing the same dirty hallways and broken doors, his surroundings so repetitive that they made him doubt sometimes that he was advancing at all.

In one of these turns, from the end of the corridor came something different. He could smell something. It was strong and unpleasant, the smell of brackish water. Jon stopped, stunned. Could this be the exit? Would he be able to finally get out? Jon didn't want to think about the unforgiving cold he would find, about the knowledge that he wouldn't be able to get to the ship alone. For a moment Jon saw his chance and followed the smell with renowned energy.

He found a set of stairs leading down and a sound of relief escaped him. This was something different, he had to be going the right way. As he hurriedly descended the air started getting colder. This only encouraged him to go down faster.

At the bottom a extrange room waited for him and Jon paused at the staircase, confused. He didn't find the exit he was expecting. Instead Jon reached an immense space, still closed but so much bigger than anything in the rest of the facility, the light of his blade not reaching the walls. Cold air filled the place.

Jon stepped into the new room and immediately something ceded under his foot, making him fall back into the stairs, his elbow hitting one of the steps. Luckily, he was able to keep the blade away from his body as he fell. If he managed to survive all of this to end up impaling himself with his own lightsaber he was going to be really angry at himself. 

Now more alert he illuminated the ground with his blade, trying to figure out what had happened.   
Instead of the metal he was expecting Jon saw with surprise that the floor was entirely made of ice. A thin layer covered the ground from the point where the stairs ended. There was a small hole Jon made by stepping on the ice, revealing dark water that seemed impossibly deep.

Jon hesitated and weighed his options. He didn't know if walking there was safe but he really didn't want to go back. This could be his only chance to get out of the place. Jon was deep in thought, trying to figure out how to safely cross the room.

An idea occurred to him. Jon concentrated, trying to hold the ice together, making the force flow through it. He tentatively put one foot in the ice again. It didn't break, another one, still nothing. Jon started moving forward, careful not to slip when he noticed something, a soft noise under the ice. The water below him was moving. Maybe he was walking over an underground stream. That could be good. If he followed it to the source he should be able to find a way out. 

He walked, focusing on the movement under him and noticed something else. The water wasn't the only thing he could feel through the ice. There was something else. Like a ripple or vibrations coming from the center of the room. For some reason it set his teeth on edge.

He kept going for a while, every inch of him tense while he concentrated. The vibrations in the ground made him uncomfortable, distracting him, making it harder to keep the ice from breaking.  
The more he walked the stronger they felt. He could feel them in his whole body now, steady, like a beating heart. He shuddered and continued forward. He had to keep moving.

A moment passed and Jon stopped, feeling light-headed, his vision swam and he almost fell. Something was going on. It shouldn't be this hard to just keep the ground beneath his feet from breaking. He was having trouble using the force.   
Maybe if this place was messing with his sensing too the other two could still be alive. Could the entire facility have some kind of force dampening field? 

The ice cracked below him and Jon tensed. It didn't matter the reason. He knew that something was making it difficult for him to use the force, that he was in danger. 

Jon was sweating now, putting everything he had in keeping the ice stable. Another ripple passed through him, making Jon gag. Everything about it felt viscerally wrong. He wasn't supposed to be there but he knew he couldn't turn back, the stairs were too far away, he would fall into the freezing water before reaching them again. His only option was to go forward and he tried with all of his might but it wasn't enough. The ice beneath him finally shattered and Jon fell into the water.

The cold was seeping into him making it harder and harder to move and he couldn't swim. The terrible smell of brackish water filled his lungs.  
Whatever this was like dark water but it didn't behave like it. It clung to him like tar, dragging him down.   
Jon tried to grab the ice to get out but it shattered beneath his weight. His hands got caught under the water and he couldn't move them now, his lightsaber was trapped there too.

Jon was panicking now. Surrounded by that dark substance, unable to sense anything, unable to see anything. The water was reaching his face, and he knew that he was going to die here.

Jon screamed, letting out all of his fear and his despair. He let them run wild. He just wanted to get out of there.  
Everything around him shattered.

He was able to move now. He was confused, not thinking anymore. He felt full of adrenaline for a moment and blindly reached out, trying to grab something, anything and get out. Finally he touched solid stone and ripped himself out of there. Crawled his way away from the water, ignoring the pain as he grazed himself with his own blade.

He laid on the stone, shaking with the cold, teeth clattering. Jon tried to stand up but he was too weak. He fell on his knees and started coughing, his entire body was shaking and his arms felt weak. He felt so tired. He stayed there for a minute, waiting for the room to stop spinning. The vibrations were even closer now, so much stronger and Jon felt sick. 

He managed to stand now, his legs trembled with the effort but he moved forward, away from the dark water. 

There was something on the stone but he couldn't see it well. It looked like a fountain. The water was pouring into a canal that lead to the stream Jon got out from. He gave it a wide berth while he walked towards the fountain, curious.

When he finally reached it Jon's breath caught. What came from the fountain wasn't like anything he had ever seen before. It looked like liquid darkness and just seeing that made Jon's head swim. The light of his blade looked so dimmed now. Like it could go out at any moment. But the worst thing was what lay at the center. It was some kind of object that Jon couldn't see. The darkness was seeping from it. It looked alive and it was beating, like a heart sending ripples through the stone that Jon could feel in his chest. The sight of it filled Jon with fear. He couldn't feel the force now. 

Jon recoiled, taking a step back, the cold seemed to get worse just by looking at the thing and the force wasn't protecting him from it now. Whatever it was it had to be responsible for it. For everything happening in here. Jon's trembling was more violent now and his fingers hurt from the loss of circulation but somehow he managed to raise his blade and strike.

The thing shattered with the sound of breaking glass and Jon's vision swam, body finally giving out. He could sense everything again.

As Jon's vision went dark a wave of relief passed through him. He could feel the presence of the other three Jedi. His last thought before passing out was happy. They were coming for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The dark is an interesting fear to mix with force stuff.   
> It's supposed to be the fear of what's lurking and you can't see so I thought that Jedi, relying on the force to live, would be pretty vulnerable to things like that if they couldn't have access to it so that's where the idea came from.


	7. 14 (part 5)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon finally gets a break from the horror. A decision is finally made

Jon woke up and an intense white light met his eyes, blinding him. Confused, he tried to block it out with his left hand but was stopped by a cold, metal grip. 

"Please, stay still sir" said a mechanical voice

There was a medical droid looming over him. He blinked rapidly, disoriented.   
He was laying on a bed in a ship's medical bay, completely wrapped in warm blankets. At the edge of his awareness he could feel the familiar presence of three other Jedi and he sighed with relief.

A noise came from his right, someone clearing their throat to gain his attention. Jon turned his head towards the sound. The two Jedi were watching him with neutral expressions 

"Jonathan. How are you feeling?" Asked Elias. 

"I am alright I think" said Jon, trying his best to keep his tone dignified while laying down, completely wrapped in fuzzy blankets.

The monotonous drawl of the medical droid started again

"He has responded well to the treatment. I recommend that he drinks warm fluids and doesn't overexert himself but there shouldn't be any complications"

"That is good news" said Bilham. No one moved. The droid waited there, looking at the Jedi master. Bilham made an exasperated sound "You can leave us now." He said.  
With its job now done the droid turned itself off, leaving the Jedi to talk privately 

Jon decided to take this as his cue to sit up. The first thing he noticed was that his clothes were different. It made sense, he had fallen into freezing water after all. It probably had been the first thing the droid had done. Jon looked around the place. It wasn't terribly interesting, just a few beds and a table. He noticed that the table had his lightsaber on it and Jon ignored the impulse of immediately grabbing it. He normally wasn't like this. In fact, to Daisy's exasperation, he had left it in his quarters quite a few times. Now, for some reason, he couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy without it.

He looked up at the two Jedi. They were exchanging a look Jon didn't understand and he waited for a moment, not knowing what he should do. Elias broke the tense silence filling the room.

"You can go to see your Padawan if you'd like, I will stay with him" Bilham bowed in thanks and immediately went for the door. Before crossing it he stopped and looked at Jon with a reassuring smile.

"It's good to see you well Jon, If you need anything I'll be in the front of the ship with Callum" he said. After that he left the room

"Is Padawan Brodie alright?" Asked Jon, worried. If he was hurt why wasn't Padawan Brodie in the medical bay?

Elias buried his hands into the sleeves of his cloak, taking a step towards Jon.

"He is well physically but master Bilham is concerned about his mental state" he said. He paused, trying to find his words "his Padawan is young and he's never been in a mission like this one before. He is worried that Padawan Brodie has been… Affected by all of this but it's nothing serious" it was a clear dismissal but Jon couldn't help but still feel worried. It was true that it had been a really bad situation. He couldn't imagine how Callum had handled all of that.  
Elias' eyes locked on Jon's, making him shift nervously in his seat.

"The person we were most worried about was you Jon" he said seriously "When we found you you had severe hypothermia. Not to mention that the effects of the artifact were a lot worse with you. You were having problems using the force before passing out. Right?"

Jon nodded, recalling the fear at the realization. He couldn't suppress a shiver

"How are you feeling about that now?" Asked Elias, his voice kind.

"I don't think anything is wrong master Bouchard" answered Jon. He felt fine.

"Can you show me?" Jon did. He slowly lifted his lightsaber from the table, taking it in his hand without any trouble. Just like always.

"Is that okay?" He asked, a bit unsure. The older Jedi nodded, satisfied. Jon secured the weapon in his belt

"Yes, I don't feel anything wrong with you. It's very fortunate that nothing happened. There have been cases similar to this one where the victims had more… Permanent complications" answered Elias

Jon froze at this and dread crawled into his gut. Permanent complications? What did that mean? Could Jon have lost the force? Forever? Jon jumped feeling a hand on his shoulder. Elias was smiling at him, amused.

"You don't have to worry about that. Like I said you seem to be perfectly fine. Good thing you were rescued right Jon?" He asked. Jon felt like he was being reprimanded.

"Yes, ehm, thank you master Bouchard" answered Jon awkwardly

"But we still have to talk about the mission" said the man "Tell me exactly what happened to you Jon" Jon did, starting from the beginning, explaining as best as he could what happened, how he felt. Jon tried to gloss over a few things but Elias didn't let him, asking him prying questions and looking at him intensely the entire time, Jon knew that if he tried to decieve him the Jedi would know. At the end Jon was feeling absolutely exhausted. The comfort he had felt since waking up in the safety of the ship seemed distant and the air colder.

"I owe you an apology Jon" said the man. "I brought you here because I wanted to show how my work is like and I must admit that I was considering taking you as my Padawan" Jon perked up at this, hopeful "but I would never have imagined something like this would happen" continued Elias with a self deprecating smile "I will completely understand if you decide not to associate with me ever again" Jon's hope shattered. Elias didn't want to take him as his Padawan anymore "It must have been a very traumatic experience for you and after your performance I am sure that the Council will look more favorably to you. The way you handled yourself in Eothel with little to no experience in situations like this was very promising" Jon tried not to show his disappointment or sadness, it stung but he was used to keeping his feelings buried. Rejection was familiar for Jon now. He kept his expression neutral and respectful while Elias kept talking "and of course I will speak very highly of you. I am sure Master Bilham will do the same"

"Thank you for saying that but..." Jon swallowed nervously, doubting if speaking up was a good idea but deciding to do it anyways, he was tired of all of this "If you really think that I am not sure why you are trying to get rid of me" he said, his voice came out harsher than he had intended

"It's nothing like that Jon" denied Elias. Jon gave him a sceptical look he had been given the 'I'm sorry but you're not what I'm looking for' speech enough times to know that Elias just wanted to let him down easy. The man continued.

"If you remember, I was part of the Leitner mission" said Elias, a smile Jon didn't understand filling his expression "I have experience with these… artifacts and there aren't a lot of Jedi that can say the same" said Elias. But that wasn't exactly true. Jon had been investigating them for months –approximately six– his mind supplied but he ignored the thought. He knew that in the last few years there had been a lot of artifacts like this one appearing all around the galaxy. There just weren't many Jedi that encountered them and survived and even less that were willing to risk doing it again "so it is very possible that if something like this appears I will be... encouraged to take a look at it" he said "I would be honored if you decided to be my Padawan but I understand, of course, that you must be eager to not encounter something like this ever again-"

Jon leaned in, eagerly. He wasn't listening to what the Knight was saying anymore. If Elias was going to be in contact with these things, if he was willing to take Jon as his Padawan Jon wanted to be there, he needed to know what they were and how they worked, he wanted to finish his training. He wouldn't have to sneak into the archives when they were empty, in fear that someone would find him anymore. 

"I don't mind that, I would like to be your Padawan please" interrupted Jon enthusiastically. Elias tilted his head questioningly

"Do you really wish that Jon?" Asked the man, he seemed serious. His eyes boring deeply into Jon

"I do" answered Jon. Determined. Elias walked a few steps around the room while Jon waited, expectant. He leaned into the table. His index finger tapping the smooth surface. A thoughtful expression appeared in his face.

"Are you afraid of spiders Jon?" He said. The abrupt change of topic threw Jon off.

"I-I don't know why you are asking me this master Bouchard" answered Jon confused and more than a bit unnerved. He didn't like this new topic and it wasn't relevant. He didn't have to answer

"You told me that you were attacked by one in the facility. That you ran away. Is that correct?" He asked. Jon grit his teeth

"Yes" he said angrily

"Well, Jon did you really see it, truly?" He asked, his voice neutral and polite. He wasn't bothered by Jon's attitude. Jon thought about it hard and remembered the creature in the darkness, the shape he could make out in the shadows with effort.

"I think so, yes" said Jon, still bothered by the line of questioning. Why was the Jedi doing this?

"I can tell you without doubt that you didn't. Master Bilham and his Padawan also encountered that creature" Jon was shocked and tried to tell the man that he didn't know this, that he had no idea about what had happened at the facility but before he could say anything master Bouchard started talking again "It didn't show itself to you, did it?" Asked the man, his tone of voice still neutral, almost bored. Jon started talking

"Not entirely but I really-" he said, but he was interrupted again

"It reacted to your fear Jon, showing you what you dreaded to see and your mind did the rest" concluded the man "The other two kept their composure and were able to see that thing for what it was. A trick of the light, a shadow at the edge of your vision. Dangerous, yes but only in the right circumstances you should have been able to defend yourself with your weapon but instead you let it lead you to the most dangerous place in the entire planet where you almost lost your life. It could feel your fear and it responded, changing its shape to fit your nightmares. Master Bilham was able to clear his mind and fight it" he was walking towards Jon again, his voice a bit louder and Jon felt small "A Jedi does not act like you did Jon" he flinched back, still sitting on the bed while the Jedi loomed over him "and then you made more impulsive decisions. The worst of them deciding to destroy the artifact. Did you know what was going to happen before you struk with your weapon?" Elias' tone was disappointed now and Jon felt a deep shame fill him "I told you I have experience with these objects. You were extremely lucky I have seen Jedi doing the same thing with… explosive results" finished Elias with a sarcastic smile. Jon felt like he was burning with humiliation.

"Then why praise me in the first place?" He asked, angrily. Elias raised his eyebrows, his voice completely calm again

"You reacted admirably for someone with no training, you survived and destroyed a very dangerous artifact and that is not an easy accomplishment but you still made mistakes. Grave mistakes that endangered your life and the mission. But you showed you have potential Jon. Do you think that your training was sufficient? That you handled yourself perfectly?" Asked the man 

Jon remembered how helpless he had been, how the force wasn't listening to him and it took everything out of him to use it, the terror at the realization that he was going to die at that place, amost drowning in the dark water, the artifact that bled darkness. Jon breathed deeply

"No" he admitted, still looking down. His eyes lifted at the sound of his name. Elias was looking into him. His eyes intense and serious

"Would let me help you if I decided to take you as my Padawan Jon? Would you be willing to learn from me?" He asked. Jon could only answer one thing

"Yes" answered Jon with confidence. He was going to do this and he would do it right. Elias smiled, tilting his head

"Then it's decided"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, Elias is SO difficult to write, I feel like I have to measure everything he does to the millimeter.
> 
> This is the last chapter of the first arc of the fic! Named 14, next is a small interlude and then we go to arc 13 because a countdown from 14 is not ominous in the tma fandom at all :).
> 
> Also check out [this beautiful fanart](https://the-arlunwyr.tumblr.com/post/627565263862267904/show-chapter-archive) by THISisGREAT


	8. Interlude 14

Killala waited politely facing a Jedi Knight, trying to remember the message she had been given.  
The tavern was almost empty and the Knight she had been told to find sat alone. He was talking through a com while looking at some files he had spread on the table. Killala could only hear half of the conversation and the man had gestured to her to wait there until his call ended but she still felt like she was intruding, it made her a bit uncomfortable.

"Yes Peter, a wonderful surprise I am sure but I really advise you to stay away for now. I don't want to do that too soon" Kilala shifted nervously while the Jedi kept talking, only half listening to the conversation, eager to finish this errand.

"No, not him either, maybe something more like…" the man paused, listening to the other end and then smiled pleasantly. 

"That will suffice." he said. Another pause and he rolled his eyes at the person on the other end before answering in a bored tone "Yes, thank you for assistance"

"I will call you shortly"

Elias made a gesture with his hand, encouraging her to start talking while still looking at his files, not paying much attention to her. Killala swallowed nervously. 

"Well… What were you going to tell me?" Asked the Knight, looking inpatient.

"I have a message from the High Council master Bouchard" she said, straightening up and trying to keep her voice firm, it came out like a high squeak instead.

"What is it?" He said, taking his eyes off the table and looking at her, the disinterest was gone. His stare was intense.

"Master Cox has told me that they have accepted your request and… uh that you may begin when you wish to?" She answered, uncertain. She didn't know the context of the message, just what she had been told to say. It made it harder to remember what exactly she had to tell the man.

"Only one of them?" Said the Knight, his voice hard and his eyes serious. Killala's eyes widened in response, noticing her slip up. She started talking fast.

"Ah, right. No. There were two. Both. Both of them" cleared up the youngling "Oh! And master Leitner has said that they want to talk to you about it" she said remembering the words of the high Council "They will contact you soon" finished Killala.  
Any trace of the tension from before was gone as the Knight leaned back into his seat, a pleased smile on his face. She relaxed as well, her job was done. He talked again, his voice was quiet.

"Perfect"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit short but this was just a small break before we start with next arc. I wanted to show a glimpse of the Council meeting but kept getting stuck :/ so you get awesome and nice Jedi Knight Bouchard, best Jedi in the order instead


	9. 13 (part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon has a nice time with his friends and a not so nice time with his master

Jon hesitated in front of Georgie's apartment door. She was at home, that much was clear. He could sense her presence there. What made him stop was that she wasn't alone. There were five more people in the apartment, five more people he could recognize.

He recalled talking to Sasha before the ceremony. Everyone was supposed to be busy today. That was why Georgie had offered him to spend the afternoon at her apartment to relax and see the Admiral for a while. He didn't have to be a mind reader to guess what was happening. For a moment he considered not going in. He didn't feel like dealing with this at the moment but they would probably try to chase him down. He sighed and knocked on the door.

"Come in! It's unlocked!!" Said Georgie cheerfully. Jon rolled his eyes and opened the door.

"Congratulations Jon!" Said an enthusiastic chorus of voices. Georgie was there with the rest of his friends. They weren't surprised to see his lack of reaction, in fact, they seemed to find it amusing. Especially Tim, sometimes he really couldn't understand the man.  
All of them were smiling, looking at him expectantly, waiting for his reaction.

"Should I act surprised?" Asked Jon sarcastically while he entered the room. Georgie's house was full of party decorations. There even was a cake on the dining table. Probably Tim's idea, maybe Georgie's. Everyone except Basira and Melanie was wearing ridiculous, cheap party hats. Tim made a loud, faked exclamation of shock.

"How could he have known? Who told you!?" Asked Tim with exaggerated hurt "Was it you Martin? Sasha? You can't trust anyone these days" he said disapprovingly. Ignoring him Jon took a better look around the room. On Georgie's counter he could see a decent number of drinks and dinner already prepared. It was clear that they had spent a while preparing this and were planning to spend the rest of the day here. They must have managed to fit all their schedules so they could throw Jon this party. He started to feel embarrassed, he really didn't think he deserved any of it. Taking the opportunity, Tim approached him from behind and managed to snatch his arm. He started walking with Jon.

"I really think this isn't necessary" He protested while being dragged deeper into Georgie's home by a very enthusiastic Tim. The rest of the people looked at them, amused.

"Come on, you can just think of it as an excuse to let loose a bit" said Daisy following them towards the table with the cake.

"This wasn't a good idea. I don't want to cause a bad impression on my first day. Master Bouchard said we would start tomorrow morning" said Jon prying his arm from Tim's surprisingly strong grip. He shouldn't stay here too long. He should give his thanks and then leave.

"Stop being dramatic, you deserve a break once in a while. We will accompany you to the temple early if you want" offered Sasha calmly, trying to sound like the voice of reason. It would have worked better if she hadn't been trying to suppress a grin.

"Yes, maybe we could help with the move? You still have to take your things to your new room right?" Asked Martin walking to Jon's side. Jon managed not to roll his eyes. The man worked in the Temple. Shouldn't he know better than this?

"I don't have anything to move, material possessions are discouraged in the order" answered Jon flatly. Martin grimaced, embarrassed.

"So are relationships" said Daisy smirking "but that didn't stop you when you were with Georgie. Did it?" Jon spluttered, offended and felt his face heat up. Thankfully, Basira took pity on him and changed the subject.

"What do you think about your new master?" She asked, curious.

"I still have no idea who he is." Intervened Melanie.

"He's the most boring knight of the order" commented Sasha

"Like Jon then." Said Melanie, smiling.

"I heard that the only time he had a disagreement with the council was during a discussion about work schedules. Apparently things got a bit heated" contributed Basira. 

"Wow" whispered Georgie. She was trying not to laugh

"Schedules?" Asked Martin, confused.

"He called them ignorant dullards" finished Basira

Georgie couldn't suppress a laugh this time. Her outburst spreading to the rest of the group Jon waited for the everyone to calm down, offended in Elias' behalf. The only one that wasn't participating was Tim who seemed thoughtful instead. .

"I still am not sold on someone having a direct line to my brain but I guess you Jedi with all your spooky shenanigans must love it" said Tim. Jon looked at him incredulously.

"It's not a 'direct line to the brain' "he protested, offended "It's a two way connection that makes people more attuned to each other" Tim stayed silent. He looked like he still wasn't getting it. Jon tried to explain "it's similar to a connection between non force sensitives. When you get to know someone you can read their emotions better right? It's similar to that, you need familiarity and time for it. It just has other factors. The force signature becomes familiar so you can sense strong emotions and danger regardless of distance. He won't ever be able to just read my mind whenever he wants to" Tim just looked at him, eyebrows raised and without saying anything. Jon took a deep breath and prepared himself for the long explanation "Look a bond made by force sensitives can have multiple-"

"Anyone ready to change the subject?" Said Melanie interrupting him

"Maybe you could finally tell us what happened on the mission then?" Asked Basira casually. Jon froze and tried to not look startled. Everyone was looking at him, expecting him to say something. He blurted out the first thing that came into his mind

"It's classified" he said quickly. Judging by everyone's faces it didn't work.

"You are telling Basira that something is classified. Right" said Melanie completely unimpressed. Jon grimaced.  
Melanie was right, of course. Basira worked in Temple security and he was just a Padawan. Basira had every right to know about his mission if she thought it was important. He just didn't want to talk about it. He looked away, trying not to meet anyone's eyes when Georgie put a hand on his shoulder.

"If you still don't want to tell us it's alright Jon" she said. Jon smiled, thankful.

"Thanks Georgie" he said. Martin gave him a worried look.

"I'm sure it went well, he took you on as his Padawan right? So that's good" he tried with an uncertain smile. If even Martin was trying to reassure him he must look pretty pathetic at the moment.

"Yeah" he said softly. Tim made a noise with his throat, trying to get everyone's attention

"Well, now it's not the time for that. We are all going to have fun tonight because we won't have an excuse until Sasha's trials"

* * *

Jon rubbed his forehead in front of his bathroom mirror. He rummaged through his drawer looking for something to help with his headache. He had to leave soon and this was his first day with his new master, he couldn't deal with this headache on top of that. His search was fruitless and he let out a noise of frustration. He didn't have anything left that could help.

Jon sighed and splashed his face with water. He couldn't even look presentable. The huge dark circles under his eyes were too big. Giving up Jon left the room in search of his master.

He found him on the corridor, standing perfectly still, waiting for him. His master gave him a pleasant smile that filled Jon with pride.

"Hello Jon. I trust you made the most of your day off?" He said, looking at his face amused. He was probably noticing his terrible appearance. Jon felt embarrassed. He hadn't even come back late, deciding to prepare for today instead of staying the night and he hadn't drunk that much at all but he knew how his face must look like to Elias.  
Jon swallowed his protests. He knew it wouldn't sound believable and just make him seem immature so he just nodded affirmatively. At this, the Jedi turned and started walking. "Follow me please" he called. Jon hurried to keep up the pace. They walked through the hallways of the Temple without saying a word until Jon, confused decided to speak

"Are we going to start the training today master?" He asked. It didn't look like they were walking towards the training rooms.

"Maybe later Jon" he said dismissively "before that we have some important work to do"

"What will we be doing?" He asked. His master spared him a look and Jon tensed. Elias smiled again, calmly and didn't answer. Jon frowned and kept following him, frustrated. If Elias was one of those Knights that tried to teach patience by acting as annoying as possible Jon didn't know if he would be able to endure the training.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There isn't a really big explanation on master/Padawan bonds in canon that I've seen. Just that they exist so this is just exclusive to this AU. If I am wrong about anything sorry? But this is an Au and a crossover so there was always going to be divergence from canon. (There are only so many hours I can spend searching if cake exists in the sw universe)


	10. 13 (part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon starts his training. It doesn't go like he expected...

Jon walked behind his master, following the older Jedi. The man walked around the archives, occasionally stopping to take something and handling it to Jon.

They spend a few minutes like that, Jon waiting for Elias to finish whatever he was doing while the pile of files in his hands kept growing. Elias, on the other hand, looked completely in his element, seemingly unconcerned and only focused on finding the next thing that caught his eyes. His steps echoed in the almost empty halls. 

Finally, the man decided that he was done he looked the documents over one last time and led Jon to an empty room reserved for the library staff.

He set everything on the table and gestured at the chair across from him. Jon took a seat. The man stayed silent for a moment, just looking at Jon while tapping the pile of documents with his index finger. 

"I am trusting that you haven't changed your opinion. Right Jon?" Jon simply nodded, not knowing what the man was referring to. It didn't matter anyway. He was going to do this. The decision had been made.

"This belongs to the only investigation about Sith artifacts that has been carried out in the last twenty years" he said, unconcerned. Whatever Jon had been expecting Elias to say it hadn't been this. Jon focused his attention on the man, tension filling his body.

"Sith artifacts?" Asked Jon, enunciating the words clearly, trying to not let himself get carried away. Elias seemed amused by this, a small smile appearing on his face

"Who else do you think would create these artifacts Jon? It is true that we don't have proof yet but there was a knight investigating this and that was her theory. Most of the Council and the Jedi that have been in contact with them agree" explained the man, waving his hand dismissively. Jon swallowed, trying to recover from his shock.

"Where is she now?" Tried Jon, hesitant. Maybe he could try to find her, to find out what she knew. Why exactly she had come to that conclusion.  
Elias made a sad smile.

"She died on the line of duty, it was… a pity" His tone was fond and his gaze distant. Like he was relieving a memory. Jon got the impression that Elias had known her. He felt somewhat guilty for bringing up the subject and he shifted in his seat, uncomfortable "but being a Jedi is dangerous Jon" he said, focused on him again "She used to say that these artifacts were made a long time ago by the Sith. That someone was distributing them now. Moving them to inhabited systems where they could cause more damage. "He paused, deep in thought "The Council believes that it is better not to cause unnecessary concerns when we aren't even sure she was right. That is why this isn't common knowledge. Fear is our enemy after all" finished Elias with a smile "Since this is a very delicate situation and we are suspecting Sith involvement you are not to talk to anyone about this am I clear Jon?" Asked Elias making eye contact with Jon, his gaze was firm but the calm smile didn't leave his face. Jon nodded seriously

"Of course master" 

"You worked here in the archives right?" Asked Elias, leaning away from the table "What have you worked with during your time here?" He asked "datapads, holobooks...?" He trailed off, waiting for Jon to answer

"Uhm… mainly datapads, holobooks and datatapes" said Jon confused.

Elias nodded and pulled something from his robe, he placed the object gently on the table and Jon had to stifle the impulse to touch it. It's appearance was simple, a cubical object made by crystal and hardware. It glowed with a soft blue light.

"Do you know what this is Jon?" Asked Elias, he looked amused by Jon's dumbfounded expression

"T-That's a holocron" said Jon. Elias nodded silently as his eyes bored deeply into Jon

"Precisely. Do you know how to use one?" He asked. 

"Yes but I never have before. They don't usually let initiates use them. Or Padawan for that matter" said Jon trailing off and watching Elias warily. He simply shrugged calmly.

"You will find that the thing that gives them worth is only the information they hold, not what they are don't you think Jon?" He said with a relaxed smile

"Yeah… I guess so" agreed Jon. He was still unconvinced but he wasn't going to protest of Elias was going to let him work with a holocron.

"What I want you to do is read these documents and record the information here in the way you think is the best. If you think any additional research is needed you will tell me. Is that clear?" 

At Jon's affirmative nod Elias smiled again

"Good" he said, seemenly satisfied. After a pause he continued. "Sadly even if Gertrude was a very talented Jedi she wasn't the best at keeping records so I spoke to the Council and requested to reorganize her investigation and it looks like we have a lot of work ahead of us. I need to look for more data and talk with some knights about all of this. I will come back in a few hours, after lunch and we will start your training. Am I clear?" 

"Yes master" said Jon firmly

"Good, I will see you then" 

After saying this, Elias left the room and Jon was left alone to do his work.

* * *

Like Elias had promised, a few hours later Jon found himself in one of the empty training rooms. They sat on the ground across from each other and Jon, not for the first time, started wondering how this was going to work exactly. Normally, when someone started training a Padawan they did so from the beginning but Jon was a few years short of finishing. Force, he hoped they weren't about to start with the breathing exercises, he didn't think he had the patience for that. He was brought out of his thoughts by Elias.

"Here is what we are going to do Jon" he said "In the mornings you will work like today and then, approximately at this hour in the I will come to fetch you and we will train. Since I am not sure about what your flaws and strengths are yet we will start this way, if you think you need something to work on you will tell me at the beginning. Then I will decide what I want you to do, this way we will be able to cover more topics faster and pinpoint what you need to work on"

Elias looked expectantly at him and Jon hesitated. He wasn't sure about what to say. Maybe he should ask for saber training? But he doubted Elias was an expert on it, better ask Daisy for that. He didn't know what he wanted to start with, maybe it would be better if he let Elias choose first.

"I don't think there is anything master" he said.  
Elias inclined his head, making a soft sound of acknowledgement

"Then we will start with something simple, like meditating. I think you have to work on controlling your feelings Jon"

Jon immediately closed his eyes and breathed deeply, feeling his body relax and his awareness expand. The presence of the Jedi in front of him helping his focus. The room around him vanished as he let himself drift into the force. This was known territory, if something had been grilled into him during all his years in the order it had to be meditation. Jon was ready for this. 

He heard the voice of his master 

"You had problems managing your fear during the last mission so we will focus on that today. I want you to learn how to control your fear using your own memories" he said softly

"How should I do that?" Asked Jon, confused. He didn't recall a lesson like this from his former master.

"First I need you to think about something you are afraid of Jon. That thing in the research facility. It adopted the form of a spider for you didn't it? Think about what you feel when you see a spider" instructed the man.

Jon concentrated, searching his memories calmly, trying to find something appropriate. He started fine, small spiders skittering around his room, a fly caught on a web, trapped. Memories that brought him unease and made him uncomfortable. He breathed out slowly, not letting himself be affected, it seemed like it was working. Maybe this would be easier than he thought.

The chiding tone of his master broke his concentration, almost making him open his eyes.

"That isn't going to work Jon" he said, calmly "If you want any progress we need to use something more substantial" 

Jon didn't answer and did exactly that. He thought about waking up from a nightmare with the feeling of webs around his body, a moving compass. A few minutes passed like this and Jon's breathing started getting irregular as more images started to invade his mind without any input. 

He felt sweat fill his brow as the sensations invaded his mind. He heard his former master scream and suddenly, he was there again. He felt the damp earth beneath his feet and could see so many people trapped between transparent threads. The eyes of the only person that had cared for Jon glassy and unseeing. He opened his eyes, trembling and on the verge of tears. 

Elias was looking at him perfectly relaxed, he hadn't moved from his seat.

"Calm down Jon, let go of your fear" he said. Elias sounded worried and his voice was kind. Jon barely stifled the impulse of screaming at him. Instead, he buried the anger and fear threatening to get out, tried to calm himself down.

"I don't think this is working master" said Jon. Talking without letting his voice waver shouldn't have taken so much effort as it did at the moment. 

"Yes, it does seem that the problem was worse than I thought" said Elias. He didn't sound bothered by this, just thoughtful.  
Jon tried to distract him.

"M-maybe we should work a bit with the lightsabers?" He said, hopeful. He wasn't trying to slack off, he just needed a break from this. The look of disappointment Elias sent his way almost made him recoil.

"You had your opportunity at the start of the session Jon." Seeing Jon's distress Elias sighed, looking at him like he was an immature child. Jon was starting to feel like one "Besides, I don't think I would be much help with that. My lightsaber skills are a bit rusty" clarified the man. 

Jon hugged his arms. That was true. He just hasn't expected something like this, thinking that during their first training session they would just get to know each other. Something easy but he was an adult. He had wanted something useful and this was it. He still wasn't eager to try again

Elias frowned, noticing his hesitation

"Jon, I know that it's difficult but this is really important. Fear is a very dangerous emotion for a Jedi to indulge in. Using your fear is using the dark side" he said seriously. 

"I would never do that!" He exclaimed defensively earning himself a patronizing look from his master.

"Of course you won't Jon because we are going to make sure of it" his voice was firm and Jon begrudgingly straightened himself, adopting his previous position, ready to start again. He would do this if he needed to.

"Alright" he said, still doubtful. Elias, noticing this started to look irritated.

"Jon, you told me that if I took you on as a Padawan you would accept my training" he said in cold, clipped tone

Jon sighed, it really wasn't Elias' fault that he didn't know how to do this and it really wasn't Elias' fault that Jon had lost control of his emotions. He wouldn't be the first Jedi to notice that Jon had a problem with that.

"Yes, that's true" he said, tiredly.  
Elias looked at him and Jon was ready this time. The Knight relaxed again, his voice filled the room.

"Then let's start again"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Elias: I'm going to train you  
> Jon: ok  
> Elias: show me your deepest fear  
> Jon:????


	11. 13 (part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon's new normal

"Uhm… Hello?" Said a familiar voice, interrupting Jon in the middle of his recording. He started muttering, angrily. Was it really so difficult to knock first?  
He looked up. Martin Blackwood was peeking through the door, a nervous smile adorning his face as he met Jon's eyes. Of course it had to be him. "Oh, there you are Jon! I haven't seen you around the archives lately" he said softly, his eyes darting rapidly around the room.

"Because I've been working. Maybe the concept is foreign to you?" said Jon pointedly. He didn't have time for this. He had work to do. He didn't want to deal with whatever Martin wanted or get distracted by his nervous babbling.  
Apparently, Martin didn't seem to understand that, finally deciding to enter the room. Jon could feel his agitation grow as he got closer to him. If he didn't like Jon why didn't he just leave him alone?

"Yeah, I know that I just wanted to bring you some tea." he said, raising a cup with his right hand and approaching Jon's table slowly, like he was trying not to spook him.

"Shouldn't you be doing something else right now?" Like his actual job, for once. Martin flinched at Jon's hostile tone.

"I am on break and I… well… I wanted to uhm–" started Martin. He was fidgeting, not making eye contact with him. Jon huffed.

"Get to the point Martin" he interrupted harshly "What do you want?" He said slowly.

Martin took a deep breath to center himself and finally locked eyes with Jon, his gaze firm "I noticed that you have been more stressed out lately, you look like you haven't been getting much sleep" he said. Then, he set the tea on Jon's table and looked at him expectantly.  
The situation was starting to feel familiar to Jon. He made an offended sound.

"Who put you up to this?" Asked Jon, squinting. It wouldn't be the first time Basira or Melanie sent someone to deal with him when he was "moody". Maybe, if they just left him alone when he didn't want to be bothered they wouldn't need to do this.

"No-one did Jon" said Martin, Jon felt his nervousness dissipate as he started to get irritated. Well, that made two of them "everyone says that you are just adjusting and that sometimes you get like this but you seem a bit off and I think that you should try to relax a little? And sleep?" Asked Martin shyly. Jon sighed and rubbed a hand on his face.

"It is true that I have been staying up late but that's because progress has been… slower than I hoped. So if you could just go away and let me finish this that would be very helpful, thank you" said Jon gesturing towards the door.  
Martin still looked unconvinced.

"Maybe you could take a small break? Did you at least have lunch?" He tried. Jon rolled his eyes. The last thing he needed was Martin, of all people, judging his habits. He knew what he was doing.

"Go away Martin" he said angrily. Martin laughed nervously and turned to leave. Before crossing the door, however, he turned to look at Jon once again.

"Are you sure there's nothing I can do for you? Like getting you something to eat or..." Jon glared and Martin trailed off, his confidence starting to fail him but still determined not to leave. Why was he fussing over Jon now? "I think I can… get you something from the kitchens? Or ask around?" Jon took a calming breath.

"If you really are set on doing this then could you bring me some painkillers from the medbay please? But I don't want anything else" Said Jon, trying to be polite but not managing to hide the frustration he was feeling towards Martin.

Seeing Martin's eyebrows knit together in worry. Jon instantly regretted opening his mouth.

"Are you alright?" He asked, taking a hesitant step towards him. Jon waved him off.

"Yes Martin, it's just a small headache" he said dismissively. Martin still looked unconvinced but finally decided to go.

"Okay, I'll be right back" he said, smiling reassuringly way him one last time. He left, gently closing the door. Jon really couldn't understand the man.

* * *

"You look exhausted Jon" said Elias

Jon didn't even bother to look at him, busy gathering everything on the table, getting ready to leave the archives. He set some of the materials aside to take to his room. He hadn't managed to finish everything today. It looked like he was going to stay up late again.

"It's nothing serious, I just had trouble sleeping last night." he said, dismissively, standing up. Maybe today he would finally be able to make some progress.

Immediately after leaving the chair a wave of dizziness hit him, making his vision go dark and Jon almost fell over, only managing to stay standing thanks to Elias, who had catched him by his arm and was now looking at Jon with worry.

"Careful " he said frowning

"I'm fine" protested Jon, yanking his arm from Elias' hold harshly.

"You don't look well. Are you sure you are alright?" Asked the Knight. Jon averted his eyes from him.

"Yes" said Jon, gritting his teeth.

"You have been doing a fantastic job Jon, but it's not worth risking your health for" said his master seriously "if you need a break you should tell me"

"No, it's really nothing. I can do it" said Jon, determined. His master hummed, unconvinced.

"Maybe it would be for the best if you took the rest of the day off" said Elias, crossing his arms and giving Jon a sceptical look. Jon shook his head frantically

"No, no. I am fine, really" he said. He hadn't managed to do anything useful with Elias' training so far. The only thing he had done was waste his master's time. He didn't want Elias to give up on him.  
Noticing Jon's stubbornness the man's expression softened, his lips forming a small smile

"Well, if you are certain…" he said

* * *

Jon woke up terrified, his heart beating loudly in his chest.

He looked at his surroundings, and a feeling of relief and exhaustion spread through him. Everything here was familiar, comfortable and a soft light, the most recent addition to his room, illuminated every corner of the place, he could see everything in here. He exhaled softly, splayed on his bed. He stayed there for what felt like an eternity, just waiting for it to pass, taking deep breaths and trying not to think too hard about his nightmares or about the memories what awaited him the next day. He focused on the presence of the thousands of Jedi that lived on the temple. He wasn't alone here, this was his home. 

He still didn't want to go back to sleep. 

Jon sat up with a groan, a blue glow coming from his study catching his attention. He walked towards it. His limbs felt heavy but he reached for it and turned the lights on. Maybe he could use the opportunity to get some work done, at least he was able to do this right. He picked the file at random, lifting the datapad with his hands and started reading.

"Statement of Rosa Meyer regarding–"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh look! It's s1 Jon! He's rude, overworks himself, denial is his friend and is really scared. But at least he isn't s2 Jon?
> 
> Oh! Important announcement!!!!! Uni will be back next week so updates will be slower!


	12. 13 (part 4)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon goes on another mission! He doesn't have a great time

The resounding clang of two ships docking startled Jon, snapping him out of his thoughts. Immediately, the hiss of the pressurization mechanisms started and Jon looked at his master.  
Elias, who had spent the entire trip meditating, now looked alert. He stood up and moved towards the door calmly.  
Jon joined him and they stood there in silence.

They still had to wait for the two vehicles to adjust before entering master Richardson's ship and Jon's impatience started growing. His master had told him next to nothing before making him board the ship in a hurry and then spent the rest of the trip without saying a word. Letting him enter situations blind and seeing how he handled himself seemed to be Elias' favoured method of teaching. Jon wasn't fond of it.

"So where is the artifact?" Asked Jon tentatively. Elias looked at him with a sidelong glance, making Jon tense up unconsciously.

"Supposedly it's been destroyed" he said neutrally. "The remains should be inside her ship, in the cargo bay, so I will have to take a look at them" he seemed disinterested. Maybe, like Jon, Elias thought that this trip had been completely unnecessary.

"I still don't understand why she asked us to come instead of going to Coruscant herself" Said Jon with a displeased expression.

"What, you aren't excited for your first mission as my Padawan?" Asked Elias, smiling, amused by Jon's attitude. He scowled in response. "You could ask her about it, after talking her statement of course" continued the Knight

"What? Do I just record her telling me what happened?" Asked Jon. That was strange. Why not do this the usual way? Wait until she calmed down and have her write everything down. 

"You brought the holocron didn't you?" Asked Elias with a light tone. Jon rolled his eyes and nodded once.

"Because you told me to do so" he said.

"Why did you think I asked you to do that?" Said Elias, sardonic. Jon bit back a rude response and stayed silent. Letting his master talk. "She asked us to come in person to inspect her ship for any effects the artifact may have caused to it. It would be useful for the investigation to have her first hand account don't you think? To see what we are dealing with" reasoned Elias. "If I remember correctly Gertrude recorded a few of them but I am not sure where she kept those datatapes" he said thoughtfully. That caught Jon's attention. He should try to ask about them when they got back to the temple. Maybe he would get something useful out of this mission after all.

Finally, the doors opened, giving them access to the other ship. It seemed to be in a good state, like from it's exterior the ship didn't seem to have any visible damage. However, what worried Jon was that the Knight wasn't there to receive them. He looked at his master, questioningly. Elias, without sparing Jon a look, simply took out his communicator and contacted the other Jedi.

"Knight Richardson?" Said Elias, polite as ever "we have arrived at your ship. Is there a problem?

"No" she said. Her voice sounded firm and Jon let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Some tension left his frame "I am sorry but I won't leave the cockpit. I will wait for you here master Bouchard" at this she ended the call.

Jon looked at Elias, confused. His master just shrugged calmly and started walking with Jon by his side. They stopped before the entrance of the cockpit. Before Jon could take another step, however, Elias put his hand on his shoulder.

"Wait a moment Jon. Before you talk to her, you have to understand that she is very… confused. The rest of the crew is missing and she must be very distraught" Jon flinched, no-one had told him about that. His master didn't notice his discomfort, as he kept talking with the same detached tone "We are here on her request but your only job in this mission is to record her experience. That is your priority. Is that clear Jon?" He asked

"Quite" Said Jon, his voice somber.

Elias gestured at him to enter and Jon took a step forward, waiting for the older man. Elias, however, just stayed behind him. Jon frowned.

"You aren't going to come with me?" He said, hesitant. Was Jon going to have to deal with this alone? 

"Like I said before she has gone through quite the ordeal so I thought it would be best if we didn't crowd her. Of course, if you think you'd rather have me there I could come in with you" clarified Elias with a reassuring smile. Jon swallowed, he could do this by himself.

"No, it's not necessary master" he said firmly. Elias nodded, satisfied.

"Good" he said, warmly "I will be taking a look around the place, see if anything is amiss" With this he turned to leave.  
Jon looked at the closed door. He lifted his hand and knocked. Without waiting for a response, he opened the door.

"Hello?" He said entering the room. In one of the chairs there was a woman. Helen Richardson, presumably. Her eyes locked with Jon's, they were wide open, and filled with confusion and terror. Jon grimaced. He had never been good at reassuring people. He tried to soften his tone "Master Richardson right? I am Padawan Sims" he said, walking towards her.

"A Padawan?" She asked, confused

"Yes, my master is the one leading this investigation. I am just here to record your statement" said Jon sitting on a nearby seat.  
"Normally I just record and file the written statements about the effects of these artifacts but since you requested for us to come here we decided that it would be best if I just recorded your experience now" he explained "If you want to, of course" hurriedly clarified Jon.

"I didn't want to get back to the temple. I'm afraid I will just… Get lost" She said, her voice soft "But I think I want to tell someone about all of this" After a moment of silence Jon cleared his throat.

"I will start recording now" he said awkwardly. He took out the holocron, placing it on the palm of his hand and concentrated, activating it was now a second nature to Jon.

"Yes, of course…" said Helen, trailing off. Jon looked at the woman. She was staring at the holocron, completely enraptured by its glow.

"Master Richardson?" Asked Jon, hesitant. Looking at her, frowning. She blinked and the trance was gone. Her attention on him again.

"Yes, yes I just have to tell you about the map" she said, tiredly. After giving her one last look Jon started talking.

"Statement of Helen Richardson regarding a map and the disappearances of Marcus Mackenzie and David Ramao"

Helen started talking then. Telling the story about a strange, ancient map that made her surroundings become an impossible maze, about the disappearances of her two companions, lost in the imaginary hallways and the strange man that watched her as she wandered around the illogical laberinth that her ship had become.

Jon listened to her speak, enthralled. Feeling each one of her emotions to a concerning degree, experiencing the fear with the same intensity she must have felt when she had been there. Jon absentmindedly wondered if she was using her mental shields at all but decided against speaking. Even if he was uncomfortable he had to do this. Helen was the one that actually had to suffer through this. His discomfort didn't matter. 

At the end of the statement both of them felt completely spent.

"I just wanted to talk with someone who could make sense of it. That should be you and your master right?"

"The man you saw there, inside the maze. Do you remember anything else about him? Like a name?" Helen shook her head in denial. Jon continued "You said that he sounded strange. Do you think that he may have been affected by the artefact? That he might have been… trapped there longer than you?" Asked Jon, trying to seem detached. He had read some statements about how much a encounter with one of this thing could change you. Would a rescue even be possible? 

"I really don't think so, he didn't look confused or lost. Something wasn't right about him. He just stood there, laughing" answer Helen, her gaze distant. Jon sighed, a feeling of tiredness settling deep into him.

"Right…" he said softly "right" he sighed and looked at Helen. She was eyeing the door leading out of the cockpit with dread. An idea occurred to him

"You said you were afraid of not finding your way back if you tried to fly to the temple" said Jon slowly, maybe he could do something about this at least "But you could come with us. That way you won't get lost." he said. The woman gave him a tired smile.

"Thank you" she said, sincere. Jon nodded, serious

"I will talk to my master now and then I will tell you when we can leave" he said.  
Then, he left and that was the last time he would ever see Helen Richardson

* * *

"Master Richardson? Said Jon, worried stepping into the cockpit again. His conversation with Elias had been uneventful. Nothing was left of the map, the danger seemed to be gone and they were ready to leave the place. He wasn't prepared to feel the presence of Helen suddenly vanish and find the room completely empty. She couldn't have left the place.

"S-she was right here, this doesn't make sense I just saw her. She should be here" said Jon, panic making him raise his voice. He searched the place uselessly as his master stood there, looking at him.

"Oh dear…" said Elias, softly.

"She destroyed the map. She found her way back. She shouldn't have disappeared!" Shouted Jon angrily, on the verge of crying. Elias simply stepped closer to him. Still so damnably calm. 

"Jon, you should know by now that these things are hardly fair. There is nothing we can do now" he said, putting his hand on Jon's shoulder. He was trying to reassure him, completely ignoring what happened to the other Knight. That was how a Jedi should act, whispered a traitorous voice inside his head. Jon tried to ignore it.

"I-if we'd been here sooner maybe I could have done something" he said, his voice wavering. For a moment they just stood there, Elias looking at him, an unreadable look in his eyes as Jon tried to think of how to help the woman. He knew it would be useless. She was simply gone and Jon had to move on. 

Right, he shouldn't be doing this. He had to move forward from here. Jon breathed deeply, calming down and burying his fear and despair deep inside of him. It wasn't the time. He was a Jedi. He had to act like one. If he didn't think about what happened but about what he could do instead things would be better for everyone he just had to do his job to the best of his habilities. 

"Master Bouchard" he said finally, he didn't turn to look at him. His eyes still fixated on the empty chair "I want to take statements directly from now on" and didn't that make sense? This experience has taught him that if he waited he could miss something crucial. He could be too late.

"You want to take them yourself?" Asked Elias, surprised "That is not how things work Jon" he chantised. Jon couldn't suppress a flich "That is not your job. Statements are written and sent to the archives. Gertrude did leave some recordings but that was something exceptional and she was the Knight leading the investigation" he paced, circling Jon "I am the one in charge of this and I think that doing interviews isn't your place" he said finally. 

"I don't care" he said, surprising himself "Jedi employ their abilities where they are most needed right? This is more important than protocol and doesn't affect the organization process. It's just a matter of priority. I will talk to the council about this if it's necessary" he said. His voice was firm.

"Do you really think that is a good idea?" Asked Elias raising an eyebrow. Jon didn't yield

"It doesn't really matter what you say about this. I am doing it" he declared

"Would you be willing to risk your position to do that Jon?" Finally asked Elias, Jon felt like he was hit by lighting, his feet almost ceding under him. That was all he had left but this was more important

"Yes" he said after a moment of silence. And then Elias slowly smiled.

"Don't worry Jon" he said reaching out to him. Jon flinched hard but the hand only ruffled his hair in a gesture of affection. "I am not giving up on you" he said affectionately "In fact, I will make this request to the Council myself. Don't worry. I can see that you feel very strongly about this so I will support you" Jon knew that he should have felt relief but he was too tired for it.

"Thank you master"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jon: *surpresses/denies his feelings* *surpresses/denies his feelings* *surpresses/denies his feelings* *surpre– "I am sure this won't have any consequences at all!"
> 
> Or, Alternatively
> 
> *red flag* *red flag* *red flag* *red–
> 
> Jon: "This is all perfectly good and normal"


	13. 13 (part 5)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon learns something alarming

"Are you sure you don't know where I can find Gertrude's datatapes?" Asked Jon again, rubbing his face tiredly and leaning back on his chair. Elias stood across from him, his arms crossed and a calm expression on his face.

Jon's work in the archives was finished for the day. He had been able to work faster lately and a decent number of statements was now recorded into his holocron.  
Still, Jon felt like he wasn't making any progress. Just reading statement after statement and learning little about what the artifacts actually were or where they had come from. He had spent his free time looking for the tapes Elias had mentioned since coming back from his last mission but, after days without any results, he was starting to lose his patience.

Elias didn't look up to him. Taking the holocron from the table and making it float over his hand, slowly making it spin. He seemed completely uninterested in the conversation.

"Yes, Jon. After noticing your fascination with them I tried to ask for them in the Archives unsuccessfully" he said. He seemed bored, his tone was even and his eyes focused on the object "No-one knows about them. It's a setback, surely, but that's just how things are. Maybe you should stop focusing so much on those tapes and get some rest" concluded Elias, probably thinking Jon was being childish. 

"They couldn't have disappeared" he insisted, standing up from his chair and starting to move around the room with a blueprint of the archives in his hands. "There must be somewhere we can look"  
Elias still didn't take his eyes off the object as he started talking again. 

"When Gertrude died all of her research was moved to the archives. Everything of use should be in there. So, if you haven't found them yet, there isn't anything else you can do" he clarified.

"Really? Maybe they have been moved to another archive. Can't we try to look for them?" He asked. Elias finally looked at him and simply raised his eyebrow. Right, that had been a stupid question. Jon tried to not look disappointed. Of course his master had thought about that already. Elias wasn't an idiot.

"They should be in Coruscant, probably just hidden" he concluded. His eyes shone with mirth as he continued talking "Let this be a lesson for you Jon some things are simply outside our clearance. That is how the Order handles information" he said.  
Jon let out a frustrated huff. Elias was right, of course. It was an annoying habit of his. Jon was supposed to be a good Padawan and accept that some knowledge had to be hidden. He still felt that it wasn't fair.

"Who has access to them then? The Council? They aren't even trying to continue this investigation" he said, irritated. Elias' lips twitched, trying to form a smile. This only made Jon scowl harder "They stopped trying to study these artifacts after the Leitner mission. Nobody needs those tapes except us"

Finally Elias sighed and tossed the holocron to Jon, who caught it and put it back in his belt. His master gave him a firm look.

"That is precisely why the tapes are hidden. After such a disaster do you think that they would let a simple Archivist carte blanche? I am risking a lot with this assignment Jon and it comes with many complications. Incomplete information is just one of them" he explained, vexed.

Jon tried to hide his surprise. He hadn't thought about any of that but it made sense. This situation was unpleasant for everyone but especially for his master. He shifted on his feet, embarrassed and guilty. He had only been focused on himself lately, acting rudely towards anyone near him, but the situation had to be extremely difficult for Elias as the sole Knight working on this assignment with the council only giving him the bare minimum. Another thought crossed Jon's mind, almost making him grimace, Elias also had to deal with an incompetent, irritable Padawan on top of all that. Before he could say anything, however, his master continued talking.

"In any case I don't think that is the kind of information they keep to themselves" he said thoughtfully, Jon's mind started to race as he came to the same conclusion "Normally something that dangerous would be handled by–"

"Temple security" said Jon, realization crossing his face

* * *

"Why not?" Said Jon, walking faster to catch up with Basira who, tired of his persistence, was trying to lose Jon in the long corridor.

"I can't give you access to secret documents Jon. Do you know how much trouble the both of us would get?" She said, still not looking at him. Her voice was hard and, although some amusement was breaking through her exasperated expression, it didn't look like she was going to cave in. Still, Jon had to keep trying.

"It wouldn't be the first time you did something against the rules" he said grumpily. Basira was with Daisy after all and Force knew Daisy didn't care about her superiors or the so called rules of the Order

"This isn't just sneaking out of the Temple" she said rolling her eyes. "These things are only accessible to us for a reason"

"I don't want to keep them" he said, frustrated "It's just… look, I am not even talking about something that serious" tried Jon "I am only looking for some tapes, not a Sith scripture" added Jon, sarcastically. "They were recorded by Gertrude Robinson, a Knight that died a few months ago. It's nothing important. I just need to listen to them once" he said, the secrecy around the situation filling him with irritation.

Then, after a beat, Basira stopped. Jon, convinced that he was making progress, stepped closer to her. Searching her face for acceptance. He froze the moment he saw her expression. Any levity was gone as she scrutinized Jon with an unreadable expression, her eyes harder than he had ever seen. Jon couldn't help but feel cowed under her stare.

"Why do you want access Gertrude's tapes?" She asked slowly. Jon swallowed, trying to hide his uneasiness

"My master was put in charge of continuing her investigation but everything is a mess" He said, slowly. Basira's eyes widened

"He is continuing her work?" She asked raising his voice in surprise. Jon frowned

"Yes? My master has been investigating those artifacts for a while now" he said, confused. Basira didn't answer, her face blank and Jon decided to continue.  
He breathed deeply and tried again, now with a steadier voice "There are some things I still don't understand, big gaps in the information and I know that the tapes are what I need to make some sense of it" Basira's frame lost some of the tension but she still didn't seem to have recovered from the shock, her mouth forming a tight line. She looked upset.

"You really want to hear those tapes don't you? It looks like you are taking this investigation a bit personally" accused Basira, glaring at him. This time Jon responded in kind, irritation bubbling up to the surface at the unexpected hostility. He returned the glare harder and raised his voice.

"Like I said, it's work assigned by the council not just–" 

"You sure it doesn't have anything to do with Helen Richardson going missing?" Interrupted Basira, calmly. Cutting Jon short "I heard that you were there when it happened, must have been quite the shock" said the Knight, making Jon recoil. 

They stayed there for a moment in silence and Jon was unable to suppress a grimace. Basira sighed, knowing she had gone too far. Her shoulders slumped with exhaustion.

"I know how you get Jon. Something bad happens and you start ignoring everyone, bury yourself in work but I can't just lend you sensitive documents just because you are friends with Daisy" she said, softly. Jon still felt rattled. He had been trying his best not to think about Helen but apparently he was completely transparent. Her accusation had hurt.  
Basira kept talking, looking at Jon calmly this time "Look, what we have, it's not something you should be messing with. I don't even know why the council is letting your master handle that investigation. It's true that we have some of Gertrude's research stacked away but I don't think it would help you" she clarified. Jon was starting to feel his hopes wane again "You are just researching artifacts right?" At Jon's affirmative nod she continued "Half of the information isn't about that and the other half is just paranoid rubbish" she finished, seemingly frustrated about it. Jon's eyebrows furrowed.

"What do you mean?" He asked, confused. Basira waved her hand, dismissively.

"All those years dealing with dark artifacts completely alone must have gotten to her head. She became very reclusive at the end, stopped trusting the Council and the Order and spent most of the time in the outer realm flying from planet to planet" she finished. Jon felt disappointed. That didn't sound promising and would explain the quality of her research, at least what Jon had seen of it but he didn't want to let his only lead go. His face adopted a stubborn expression as Jon tried again "I still think that if I could just–"

"That is the end of it Jon" said Basira in a voice that didn't leave room for argument. Jon felt frustrated, unable to even manage this. "Look, I am not going to report you but this is the end of the conversation"

"Alright, I will stop" conceded Jon finally "Thank you Basira" he said, sarcasm strong in his voice. Jon turned to leave, better leave Basira to her 'oh so important work' while Jon wasted another morning in fruitless research.

"Wait Jon, I still have to talk with you" she said, making Jon stop. He turned to look at her, scowling.

"What is it" he asked, irritated. Basira didn't seem bothered by his lack of manners and simply talked, her expression softening further.

"Look, normally it wouldn't be me saying this, I know we are not the closest but Daisy is starting to get worried, everyone is actually. You haven't looked entirely well in weeks. Does your master really treat you that badly?" She asked seriously. Tension disappeared from Jon's frame as exhaustion took hold.

"No, he's told me I should take more breaks too actually" he said with a sigh "reduced my workload a few times but I just feel like I'm failing him, like I'm not doing anything right so I always end up doing overtime anyways" he admitted. Basira searched his expression for any sign of deception, when she found none she nodded.

"So it's just you putting pressure on yourself" she concluded.

"Yes, I guess it is" accepted Jon, resigned

"You know you don't have to become a Knight right? None of us would mind if you decided that wasn't your thing" tried Basira

Jon's jaw clenched. That was easy for her to say. It was easy for any of his friends to say. 

"Well, in any case get your act straight" she said "You're an adult. I understand that the assignment you are working on is… difficult but you aren't the only one dealing with something like this. You need to learn how to deal with it or get out. And start taking care of yourself, for Force's sake." She finished, her tone sounded fond but for Jon it felt somewhat empty.

"Yes, of course Basira"

* * *

Jon opened his eyes, they were supposed to be trying joined meditation today but there was something that had been bothering him since his conversation with Basira.  
Elias met his gaze, his expression questioning. Jon swallowed. It was probably nothing, just a bad feeling. Nevertheless, he felt like he had to ask.

"Knight Robinson" he started "you said she died in the line of duty" and Jon knew that was normal. Their work as Jedi was extremely dangerous. He didn't know why the whole situation felt off to him. It was just… The secrecy, the way Basira had talked about Gertrude's work, her story about how she became paranoid. All of that felt wrong but it was probably lack of sleep. Jon just needed to clear his head.

"I did" said Elias neutrally. Jon took a deep breath. He was getting nervous over nothing. A few seconds passed while Elias waited patiently for Jon to talk

"What exactly happened to her?" Managed Jon, finally. Instead of the reassurance he needed Elias' response send ice running up his spine as his breath caught.

"There was an explosion at the temple, an unfortunate accident" Elias answered, his tone filled with longing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my defense, keep in mind that this is pre character development Jon talking to pre character development Basira. They care about each other but need to go through some stuff before things can work
> 
> In other news... Last chapter of this arc! Next is a small interlude!!!
> 
> Jon: show me the top secret documents  
> Basira: lol no way  
> Jon: >:(


	14. Interlude 13

"So… how is he doing?" Asked Tim, sitting back on his chair. His posture was relaxed and he looked perfectly content. He was holding a cup of tea in his hand and had a smile on his face. If this was anyone else; he may have fooled them into thinking that he was completely at ease but Sasha could see the slight strain in his smile, the subtle tension on his shoulders.  
She sat at his side.

"Maybe if you had come with us you'd know" she answered. Tim rolled his eyes and looked at her with a deadpan expression.

"Yeah, hard pass. I don't actually like dealing with him when he gets like this" he said, seemingly unconcerned. Sasha smiled, amused. Who did Tim think he was talking to?

"You are a liar, Stoker" she accused pointing a finger at him "Melanie saw you hovering last week" Immediately, Tim raised his hands in a gesture of innocence, a bigger smile, now more genuine, filling his face.

"I was just visiting the archives… It's a very interesting place you know?" He said. Sasha snorted in disbelief.

"Doing what? Looking at everything from afar? It's not like you could take anything from there" She said, accusingly.

"Maybe I just wanted to admire the view. The archives are ancient, one of the most well preserved examples of old Coruscanti architecture" he answered, faking offense.

Sasha simply raised an eyebrow and Tim let out a small laugh.

"Yeah, I really didn't want to say this in front of Martin, you know how he gets. He is anxious enough already. He would have a heart attack if he thought I was worried" said Tim. He sighed, looking away "but I'm really starting to think that this isn't going to end well"

"So you finally admit something weird is going on" she said, triumphant. Tim simply shrugged, twirling the drink in his hand.

"I never denied it, just thought he would get over it" he said. Then he grimaced, averting his eyes from Sasha "or at least tell us what was happening" he finished, his voice softer. 

"This is Jon we are talking about" said Sasha, automatically. Tim didn't look at her, his gaze down as he shifted in his seat "It's not just that Tim" she said, placing her hand on his shoulder, trying to reassure him "From what Basira told me I think he can't" 

"Yes, whatever" he said dismissively with a sigh.

They sat there in silence for a moment while Sasha fidgeted, conflicted. She didn't want to further upset Tim but it needed to be said. 

"I still think that it's too much of a coincidence that just when Jon is chosen by Knight Bouchard he starts acting like this" she said, her voice clear. Tim lifted his gaze, confused.

"Wasn't Daisy looking into that? I thought she said Bouchard was safe'' he asked. He seemed more curious than upset so Sasha continued.

"She was, didn't find anything suspicious but I still don't trust him" she said, her voice filled with frustration.

"Oh, I see, so you didn't try to snoop around yourself right?" He asked with a knowing smile

"I did" she said, playfully bumping her shoulder with Tim's "Bouchard doesn't seem really social. Apparently the only Knight he was close to died a couple of months ago and he hasn't been close to anyone else since but every master I talk to always tells me how they admire the patience he is having with the half trained, defective Padawan" finished Sasha angrily

"Ouch" he said, flinching.  
Sasha sighed

"Exactly but what did you expect?" She said, resigned "Even if he tries to hide it Jon has always been emotional and there's nothing wrong with that but…" Sasha trailed off, biting her lip.

"Yeah… See? that's one of the reasons why I'm not a fan of the Order" he said, raising his hands in frustration. 

Sasha hummed, deep in thought. Maybe she could find a way to watch them more closely. 

"Well" she said, slowly "I think we'll find out sooner or later" 

Tim snorted, amused, probably guessing she was planning something. He had always been good at reading her.

"Or enter the archives one day to discover his dead body covered in cobwebs" he said sarcastically.

"You've seen them too right?" Exclaimed Sasha, raising her voice. She thought she had been the only one. Jon's workplace was packed with the little pests "What's up with that? How has he not noticed?" She asked, incredulous.

"Oh, don't worry, we'll know when he does. The screaming will be heard in every corner of the planet" he affirmed, snickering.

"Probably wouldn't notice if you covered the entire room with confetti" she said. Tim wriggled his eyebrows comically at her.

"Is that a challenge?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise update! (I had this chapter half finished on Sunday already so this was just a matter of fixing some things)


	15. 12 (part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fun road trip with surprise guest!

Jon arrived at the hangar a few minutes earlier than necessary, knowing that his master would be there already. 

This was the loudest place in the Temple. The only one where the usual atmosphere of serenity that permeated the home of the Jedi was broken. It buzzed with life, filled with people preparing to leave Coruscant. Mechanics were doing maintenance on the ships docked there, running around the place. The sound of multiple engines firing up and the clang of metal echoed in the high ceiling. 

Jon tried to avoid making eye contact with anyone as he traversed the place, a scowl etched on his face, ignoring the feeling of dread settling in his gut. He wasn't exactly eager to start the mission.

After the initial excitement the trips became tedious. Finding someone with new information, recording the statement and returning to the Temple again was all he had to do, after all. Nothing of note had happened since his failure with Helen but the trips always left him with a feeling of complete exhaustion. Probably him not knowing how to deal with what had happened that time. However, his time in Coruscant wasn't better. Since the news about Gertrude's death he had felt uneasy inside the Temple. 

He huffed in frustration. Now wasn't the time for that. He had to concentrate on the mission. He knew he was tired and he couldn't let himself slip. As much as Jon liked to pretend otherwise it was a very real possibility. It had happened this week again, after all. Thankfully, he had been alone. He didn't want to think about what would have happened if another Jedi had been there. Jon focused on his shields for a moment and breathed deeply. He was ready for this.

Jon arrived at his destination. The ship he had to board was waiting there for him and, in front of it, his master. He stood, patiently. Surrounded by an air of serenity Jon envied. Maybe his training would be more useful if Elias tried to teach him that instead of their usual lessons. Something to ask for later, perhaps.

As Jon got closer, something made him pause. There was someone besides his master, waving enthusiastically at Jon. Someone he could recognize.

"Sasha?" Asked Jon, surprised, his pace faster now. He noticed that Sasha seemed tense. He shook his head "What are you doing here?" He said, confused. A small smile appeared on her face.

"Hello Jon" she said, taking a step towards him "Didn't your master tell you I was coming?" She asked, her eyes flickering to said man for a moment. Jon furrowed his eyebrows and directed a questioning look towards him too.

"I decided it would be better if this was a surprise" clarified Elias with a smile, clearly amused by their reactions. Jon glared at him.

"She is coming with us?" he asked, incredulous, giving Sasha a side eyed glance. Jon noticed that she wasn't smiling anymore, her eyes were fixed on Jon, gaze filled with intent. He shifted, unsettled.

"The route to Yaigry is going to be difficult to navigate" explained Elias, calmly "so I was advised to get help from someone more experienced in flying" he gestured at Sasha "Padawan James here offered. She was very excited to come with us" concluded his master. Jon expression soured. That didn't make sense. Sasha absolutely hated those types of missions. She had to be here for something else and she seemed distracted and tense, there was something she didn't like. He swallowed. His throat felt dry, suddenly. 

"Shouldn't an actual Knight be here then?" He tried. Sasha's expression became neutral.

"Well, since my trials will be coming up soon my master is letting me take some missions alone" she said as she looked at Jon, a small frown appearing on her face "To learn how to be more independent" she clarified

Jon's eyebrows furrowed as she talked and he opened his mouth to ask her another question. She was hiding something.  
Before he could, however, the sound of Elias clearing his throat made him stop.

"She won't be leaving the ship Jon" he said, annoyed, rolling his eyes "So, as long as you understand that any information about our investigation is classified there shouldn't be any problems" he finished, his voice firm and serious. 

"Of course, master" conceded Jon, bowing his head, feeling Sasha's intense gaze on him.  
Elias waited for a moment, looking at the two of them intensely. After that, he nodded, satisfied and smiled again.

"Right, shall we go then?" He asked "After you Padawan James" he said, gesturing at the ship's ramp.

* * *

Jon watched Elias and Sasha talk politely to each other. Sasha's eyes were fixed on the ship's controls while she spoke but she didn't seem distracted, asking Elias about his work in a professional tone. Jon only half listened to the conversation as his eyes roamed around the ship, in search of something amiss. He didn't find anything out of the ordinary but then again, he didn't know much about flying. If someone had sabotaged any of the mechanisms he wouldn't know. His heartbeat sped up as the vehicle took off and Jon tried really hard not to show his unease. If something actually happened she would have to trust the pilot of the ship and this was Sasha, he could trust her.

Jon swallowed thickly. He still didn't know why she was here and she was hiding something, he just knew it. A feeling of unease started to spread through him. If Sasha caused an accident on purpose Jon would have no way of defending himself. The moment the thought crossed his mind Jon scoffed in disbelief. He was being stupid, he had to control his paranoia, it was getting out of hand. He knew Sasha and he trusted her with his life. 

Finally, he settled down on his seat, deep in thought. His left hand holding the holocron while his finger brushed against the sharp edges. It had become a habit recently, taking the device everywhere he went, its weight felt reassuring on Jon's palm.

The conversation kept going for most of their journey. Sometimes including him, though Jon wasn't exactly eager to participate. Giving short, cutting answers every time Sasha asked him something.

After a few hours Sasha's voice interrupted his wandering thoughts, announcing their proximity to their destination. It felt too sudden and Jon couldn't help the feeling of ice spreading through his gut as he heard the news. What if they were too late again? He couldn't stop a shiver, and he slipped, his shields faltering, broadcasting his feelings loudly. Jon froze in his seat in panic. It had been just a moment but it had been enough. The conversation halted as Sasha's attention focused on him.

"Are you feeling alright Jon?" She asked, he could hear the worry in her voice and Jon cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure.

"Yes, perfectly fine. Don't worry Sasha" he said, trying to sound firm, professional. The perfect picture of what a Jedi should be. He was used to that, even if it was getting more difficult to adopt that facade as the days went by. Of course, Sasha wasn't fooled.

"No" she murmured softly "you don't feel fine, that was…" she said, trailing off. She shook her head "Master Bouchard" she continued. Her voice was louder, more firm "If your Padawan isn't feeling well we have to return to Coruscant" concluded Sasha. Jon felt his heart speed up in indignation, she couldn't do that to him.  
Thankfully, his master didn't seem convinced.

"Padawan James" he said in the same tone "Do remember who is leading this mission, please. You are only our pilot and not even a Knight yet so I am fairly certain that you are not qualified to give me orders" chantised Elias, smiling sharply but without raising his voice, perfectly pleasant. Jon's lips curled downwards. He shouldn't be talking to Sasha like that "But you do have a point" continued Elias, tilting his head, considering and pinned Jon with a look "We can't deal with a liability like that on the field can we?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. Jon squirmed in his seat, his face burning with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. "So, Jon. Do you think this going to be an issue? That we should go back to the Temple?" Asked Elias politely.

Jon gritted his teeth. His left hand now holding the holocron in a dead grip, its corners digging into his palm. His mouth twisting into an unpleasant expression.

"No" he let out as firmly as his voice allowed him to. As long as it was his decision to make, he would push forward. He couldn't be the reason for them to go back. Elias nodded, closing his eyes and smiled approvingly at him.

"Then I don't see what the problem is" he said lightly. Jon could tell he was pleased and let out the breath he was holding. This was what he needed to do.

"I understand, master Bouchard" said Sasha, just as polite, smiling. Her voice and posture calm, and Jon would have thought she was completely at ease if it wasn't for the way she gripped the ship's controls, her knuckles turning white.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhhh, before we continue the fic I want everyone to take a look at the tags. The warning tag there is... There for a reason... So I am just making this warning because this arc is when things will start to get... Harder so just keep that in mind.
> 
> Elias: *is Elias*
> 
> Sasha: "So you have chosen death"
> 
> Jon: "Uhm why are you looking at each other like that???"


	16. 12 (part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon and Sasha go on a mission! They talk!!! Elias is mentioned in this talk

"I am surprised he didn't insist much" said Sasha, casually.  
Jon, tore his eyes from the empty streets of Yaigry and turned to look at her. She seemed distracted, her eyebrows furrowed and gaze distant, looking ahead, deep in thought.

"On coming with us you mean?" He asked, drily. Sasha nodded. "You were really determined to 'not let me out of your sight' and someone had to stay" he said, irritated. What was she playing at? Both of them knew that she had been very persistent. Really, he may have slipped and that had been his fault but Jon was dealing with it. And if his master wasn't too worried then Sasha shouldn't be either.

"I would hate having to stay put while you two had all the fun" she said, smiling sharply. 

"Wasn't that exactly what you were supposed to be doing?" He asked, deadpan. Sasha snorted, unimpressed. Jon didn't respond. The conversation died off.

There was a pleasant breeze in the air. Warm, but not too dry. For Jon, Yaigry seemed like a nice place to live.

They took another left turn. He still couldn't see anyone around. That was fine, Jon didn't like crowds. The streets were beautiful, well kept. Jon couldn't find a single flaw. The walk should be pleasant. It should make Jon feel better. But he knew what he would find at his destination. His palms started sweating.

"It has happened before." He said softly, partly just to break the silence. To think about something else.

Sasha looked at him, confused and tilted her head, questioning.

"Him not coming I mean" he clarified "I always record the statements alone. Most of the people I talk to during these missions are..." he trailed off, thinking about the overwhelming feelings he could pick up when someone gave a statement "distraught" he said with a grimace "Elias isn't very good at dealing with that" he explained.

"And you are?" Asked Sasha, sceptical. Jon rolled his eyes.

"No, but since I am the one recording I have to be there" he said with a sigh, feeling his shoulders slump. Sasha simply shrugged.

"That makes sense I guess" she said, tentatively.

"You guess?" Asked Jon, raising an eyebrow. Sasha threw up her hands in exasperation.

"It's not like I am an archivist, Jon" she huffed, frustrated "I still have no idea about what you do" she protested. Jon let out a small sound of amusement.

"Fair enough" he said with a small smile and checked his map. Another couple of meters straight and then they had to take a left turn. They walked at a steady pace, silently, trying not to bring attention to themselves. Still, they didn't need to bother this time. 

"Is it just you every time?" Said Sasha after a minute, suddenly she seemed more focused "Does he even leave the ship?" She asked, inching closer to Jon.

He thought about it for a moment, somewhat confused by her change in demeanor.  
"Depends on where the mission is" he said, uncomfortable "But he has stayed a few times" admited Jon. Sasha frowned, she looked upset.

"Why?" She asked, serious.

"Maybe he has to make sure nothing happens to the ship?" Tried Jon, somewhat embarrassed. He should know what his master was doing, really. He just hadn't thought to ask. The first time Elias hadn't really answered and they ended up talking about other things. It hadn't seemed important and then it just became a habit. Something he expected "I don't know. I actually do prefer to be alone for the recordings so I am not going to complain about it" he said, crossing his arms, leaning away from Sasha. 

"In Coruscant he leaves you alone too right? In the Archives" She started, slowly, softly. Jon nodded. She was asking for a reason. This wasn't small talk anymore "I haven't seen you with him much" she said, biting her lip.

"Where are you going with this?" Asked Jon, unsettled. Sasha turned her eyes away

"I… I think Elias is using you Jon" She said, gently. Jon's mouth dropped and he spluttered, trying to protest. Sasha sighed and placed her hand on Jon's shoulder "Look. He lets you do the research every day on your own" she said, averting her eyes "leaves the Temple fairly frequently and has a lot of free time. And now you are telling me he doesn't even help on the missions. It does look like he just wants you to do his work for him" concluded Sasha. Jon shook her off in denial, taking a step back. She couldn't be right. Could she?

Jon thought back to the long mornings. How the only thing Elias did was bring him more work every week and tell him where Jon needed to be next. How he didn't seem invested in Jon's training, not caring about his lack of progress. Jon dug his nails on his palms. He had thought Elias simply treated him like this because he trusted him. But this made more sense didn't it? Why else would he have taken him as a Padawan? Someone older enough to be useful that no one else would want.

"Oh" he said, softly. His eyes stung. Sasha looked at him with pity. It just made him feel worse.

"Jon, I–" she started, her tone was dejected.

"You know what?" He said, angrily, raising his voice "I don't care anymore" and he didn't, he could deal with this. In fact, this made everything easier. As long as he could fill the holocron Elias wouldn't care about anything else "If that is the only reason why he took me as his Padawan that is fine" he concluded. Sasha was still looking at him, her eyes sorrowful.

"You shouldn't have to put up with that" she told him steadily. Jon wasn't listening to her.

"He is the only Jedi in the whole order to give me the opportunity." He told her as firmly as he could, his voice still trembled "So, if to become a Knight I have to be his damn butler droid, I will do it. It doesn't matter" he said, trying to ignore the tightness in his chest. It didn't matter. It was just another thing to deal with. Jon could do it. He was sure. If only he wasn't feeling like he was falling apart.

"He's an awful master, Jon" she said, now indignant "I've seen how he treats you. No one in their right mind would let a man like that train a Padawan" 

Jon looked at her determined expression, the fury towards his master he could see in her eyes. He cleared his throat.

"We are here" he stalled, looking away from her. And he was right. Their destination, an old, enormous building loomed over them. He knew they weren't done. That Sasha wouldn't let this go so easily. Jon just wanted some time to process.

They walked inside together.

The shop was not what Jon had expected. The entire place smelled foul and every wall was covered with enormous shelves up to the ceiling. Other shelves, smaller ones, were distributed around the place in a way that reminded Jon of a maze. He couldn't even see the counter. All of them were filled with droid parts stored without any noticeable pattern. They weren't the machines Jon was used to seeing. They weren't covered in shining metal. Maybe, this business was specialized in making their products as realistic as possible? Looking closer Jon noticed that some of them were leaking a dark, oily substance. Jon's lips thinned in distaste.

"Hello?" He called out, loudly. There was no answer. He walked deeper into the shop. He didn't think anyone was around. After a while of wandering around, traversing the disorganized building a loud metallic sound coming from behind made Jon jump.  
From the direction of the sound Jon could see someone coming. They were tall and extremely thin. Almost unhealthily so. They were wearing a mechanic's outfit with a belt filled with tools, all of them completely clean. They seemed to be human but that assessment didn't feel quite right. Maybe another species that resembled them? This conclusion didn't feel like the truth either. 

"Oh! Hello! I wasn't expecting visitors! How exciting!" They said. Their voice was cheerful. Jon cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure and ignore Sasha's amusement. He really must have been very tired to not notice their presence.

"Yes, we are from the Jedi order" said Jon, firmly. The stranger didn't move, just smiled at them, placidly. Jon was starting to feel uncomfortable. He kept going regardless "Apparently the owner of the establishment, one John Fellowes, had an encounter with a dangerous artifact, I am here to take his statement about its effects" he said, his eyes were drawn back to the droids, something about them made him uncomfortable. Sasha stayed close to him, listening intently. Both of them knew that she shouldn't be there. The investigation was supposed to be off limits after all. He still felt safer with her there.

"You must be mistaken!" the stranger said with exaggerated surprise "I am the owner of the shop!" They clarified, not losing their joyful demeanor.

"Oh, I see…" Said Jon, not even bothering to hide his disbelief. They were lying to him "Your name, then?" He asked, casually

"Rose!" They said cheerfully and Jon froze. His face suddenly pale.

"Not Rose Cooper surely" he said, a small, startled laugh leaving his lips.

"Well, that is me yes!" They affirmed and Jon shook his head in denial, shaken. Sasha frowned, confused.

"But that is just not possible" he said. "That was one of the victims" Now alarmed. Jon scanned the stranger again. There was something inside their jacket glinting. It was metallic, like the razor from the statement.

Realization coursed through his body as his eyes darted around the building, mind trying to catch up. That wasn't synthetic. The droids were covered in real skin.

He swore loudly. Took Sasha's hand and started running

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing Sasha is difficult. We have little canon material of her. Still, I tried to write her as less fanon or use her as plot convenience as little as I could. 
> 
> I love how Jon doesn't question how weird and how little sense his job makes in canon so in this fic Sasha was the one that had to tell him he is actually doing all the work while Elias does nothing, actually. Go king! be oblivious! 
> 
> Elias' nefarious plans have been revealed!
> 
> All the comments about Elias being evil were because of this right?
> 
> Completely unrelated question! Is anyone not from Tma??


	17. 12 (part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get bad

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Important author note from people that are only from star wars (if there is actually anyone) Tma is a horror podcast and it can get really graphic sometimes. The canon typical violence tag is referring tma and not star wars so some of that could be unexpected. Please keep this in mind before reading!

There was a moment of hesitation after deciding to run. Sasha had followed him without question, trusting his judgment. It had made Jon doubt himself.  
What if he was wrong? Leaving had been an impulsive decision based on a hunch after all and he had been jumpy from the start. And even if they were in danger, what if running wasn't the correct choice? 

Then, the shelves started to shake and all those questions disappeared, leaving only fear in Jon's mind.  
Countless droids started to move, dislodging themselves from their places of display falling to the floor pushing the pieces of metal in their path, not caring about the damage and Jon's heart accelerated. 

The droids were slow and extremely loud, some of them broken, missing a few parts. Others got damaged by the fall. None of them were armed, clearly not built for combat, but Jon realized, with increasing worry, that they were still too many for two Padawan.  
All of them were covered in perfect patches of what Jon knew was real skin. Jon gulped. He didn't want to think about the victims. He reached for his comlink, frantically but paused, surprised, his steps faltering for a moment. The holocron was glowing, warm. It was recording.

"Jon, what are you doing!?" Shouted Sasha, snapping Jon out of his thoughts.

"I just– Okay" he said, shaking his head. He would take a look at it later. Sasha was right, now really wasn't the time for this. He cleared his throat, trying not to show his panic as he spoke into the comlink "Master, we are under attack, please we need help" he said, his voice coming out louder than necessary. He waited, nothing. Called once again. Still, he got no answer. He snarled, frustrated, resisting the impulse of throwing his only means of communication in vexation.

The voice of the stranger echoed in the high ceilings.

"Leaving already? Don't you have more questions little Jedi?" They asked in a cheerful, mocking tone.

He swallowed, his throat dry and kept moving. Another turn and a group of droids appeared, blocking their path. Jon slowed down in concern but Sasha didn't, without showing any hesitation, she ignited her lightsaber and charged.

Their escape became a blur of movement after that. Jon let himself get carried by the action as they tried to keep distance from the droids while they kept appearing from every direction.  
They used what they could. Throwing the rubbish they found on the floor, toppling shelves and cutting down droids. Running as fast as their feet allowed them to. They kept going for what seemed like an eternity, having to change their path a few times, retracing their steps. Until, finally, they reached the doors. Jon let out a sigh of relief the moment he saw them, hope blooming in his chest. 

The doors were closed, of course, but that didn't matter to him at the moment. The exit was there and Jon knew what he had to do. He didn't waste any time and pushed his blade through the metal door. 

"I'll watch your back" shouted Sasha as she turned to face the droids, her expression firm and determined.

Jon shifted his grip on the blade and started to move it. To his chagrin it was going a lot slower than he had thought. He had never tried this before, just knew the theory. His master hadn't told him how difficult this would actually be. His arms trembled with effort as he tried to make an opening in the solid metal and he started to sweat as the temperature of the air rose steadily. 

Behind him Jon could hear the sound of a lightsaber passing through the air, cutting through metal and he tried not to look. He couldn't get distracted, if he accidentally touched the hot metal he could lose his hand. He had to be careful. Sasha was doing what she could and Jon had to do his part too. Suddenly, a chilling thought occurred to him. If Sasha hadn't decided to come to this mission Jon would probably be alone now. He would already be captured. The concerned voice of her friend snapped him out of it.

"Jon? We need to leave now" she said hurriedly, anxiety reflecting on her voice.

"I am going as fast as I can" he answered, frustrated and he was trying, his palms sweating now, his grip threatening to slip. Just a few more seconds. He could do this.

Then, he heard Sasha shout, and his heart stopped for a moment.

"I think that is quite enough" said that unnerving, artificial voice. Jon turned and almost jumped back in shock. They were already behind him. He tried to pull his lightsaber out, to move, but something grabbed his legs. He fell and everything went black.

* * *

Something was touching Jon's face.  
It was cold and solid against his skin. Confused, Jon opened his eyes, blinking rapidly. He felt disoriented. What was happening?

"Oh! Are you awake now? Hello!" Shouted a voice, inches away from Jon's face, making him flinch back violently. The hand gripping his face didn't bulge, keeping him close and Jon's head spun. The hand belonged to their attacker. The one that had the artifact and had probably killed Rose Cooper. Alarmed, he tried to grip his assailant's hands, to get them to release him only to realize that he was shackled to the wall behind him. He started breathing faster now, panicked, he struggled. Still, he couldn't get free.

"Jon?" Asked a voice on his right, a familiar voice, filled with concern and Jon's eyes immediately flickered towards it. A few meters away, was Sasha. Her eyes filled with concern and her mouth tight. 

A mixture of relief and despair bloomed in Jon's chest. She was here too. He grimaced, uncomfortably. He was being incredibly selfish. He shouldn't feel relieved. This was all his fault. If he had notice the danger sooner this wouldn't have happened. 

"See? He's alright! No need to worry!" Said their attacker, happily and finally released Jon. The moment their contact broke his knees buckled, almost making him fall. The stranger stepped away.

"A-are you going to kill us?" He asked, his voice trembling. 

"I'm not going to kill you silly!" They exclaimed "You are a much more useful to me alive, little Jedi. Besides, someone would get very mad at me if that happened to you! Really annoyed! I would prefer not having to deal with that" They complained. Jon felt a shiver travel through his spine. What did that mean? Was this person working for a slaver? Before he could ask, they continued talking "I would not try to leave however! You wouldn't like the consequences" 

"Who are you?" Asked Sasha slowly, her eyes narrowed. 

"Oh, that is a difficult question! But you can call me Nikola" they explained with a dismissive wave of hand. Sasha wasn't done.

"If you aren't going to kill us what do you want from us?" She tried. Nikola's smile became wider, her face now locked in an unnatural expression. No-one should be able to smile that widely.

"That's a surprise!" They said, faking pleasantness. Then their eyes locked in Jon and Jon noted that they were too flawless, "Really, you've been very rude. It's really disappointing! I've been looking forward to your visit and then you two go and destroy my shop! You should learn better manners!" They finished. Jon frowned, caught completely off guard

"What?" He said, dumbfounded

"Your master should teach you better manners! His name was Elias right? Should I call him Elias?" They asked, tilting their head exaggeratedly.

"How do you know that?" Asked Jon, fearfully. They shouldn't have access to that information. He looked at Sasha who seemed just as confused and unsettled as him. Jon's stomach dropped. This had been a trap. Someone had told Nikola they were going to be here, hoping they wouldn't come back. And they had gotten that information from the order. Only the Council knew who was assigned to each mission. It had to be someone in the Temple. The realization hurt, despair filling his chest. There was someone trying to get rid of him and it was probably someone he knew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This freaking chapter, I swear. I had to rewrite it 5 times and I am not still completely happy about it but I had to post it already because I was getting really frustrated. If in the next few chapters we have some plot holes I am sorry but I tried. 
> 
> Also does anyone else think that melting a metal door has to be extremely dangerous!? And could easily backfire? If some of the metal falls in your hand you lose it.
> 
> Nikola: Hi Jon!
> 
> Jon: *panik*


	18. 12 (part 4)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon doesn't handle stress well

Jon looked critically at his restraints, teeth gritted. This wasn't going to be pleasant, but it was necessary.  
He breathed deeply, bracing himself, planted his left feet against the wall and pulled with all his strength, letting out a pained sound as the metal dug into his wrists, making the already raw skin bleed, his hands burning. He still didn't stop.

"What are you doing?" Shouted Sasha from behind him. Jon paused for a moment, taking a few shaky breaths. 

"We need to get out of here now" he clarified, ignoring her worried tone. It wasn't time for that now, they had to leave. He pulled again, brute force wasn't working so he used less strength this time and rotated his wrists, trying to slip free. Tears gathered in his eyes as he tried to ignore the pain. Blood dribbled to the ground as he kept rubbing his skin against the metal. His voice came out unsteady "We couldn't break the restraints but I think I can try to–" 

"Jon, wait, don't–" interrupted Sasha, raising her voice as Jon once again pulled at his restraints with a grunt. Wasn't there a way to do this? Something about breaking his thumb? "You are just hurting yourself! Do you even know how to get out of those?" 

Jon turned and finally focused his attention on Sasha, noticed her wide eyes and pained expression. He talked again, now more hesitant.

"No, I don't but–" he tried. Sasha didn't let him explain.

"Stop, Jon" she said firmly, angrily ''You aren't thinking clearly. I know that you are scared but you can't do this" Her eyes were fixed on Jon's as she talked. He looked away, still feeling the sharp sting on his wrists. He wanted to say something else, try to defend himself but his voice was locked in his throat. Sasha's expression softened a fraction. "Look, Elias is out there and we can think of a way to get out. We still have options" 

"You think he will deign himself to check if we are alright? Maybe he is too busy with 'secret Jedi business'" he said, voice cold and dripping sarcasm. Sasha averted her eyes.

"I think he can be competent when he wants to" she said quietly, talking to herself. It made Jon laugh humorlessly.

"We can't afford to wait for that long" he explained, with a sigh "We need to think of a way to scape" 

For a moment they stood there silently, looking at each other and Jon shifted, his wrists were aching more than he had thought.

"You could start by telling me what is going on" Tried Sasha after a beat. He huffed, annoyed.

"I already told you I can't" he said, again. They had talked about this a few times after finding themselves trapped. He had answered the same thing every time. However, instead of accepting it Sasha scowled this time, taking Jon by surprise.

"No, you just don't want to, Jon. I am already involved in this mess. Keeping me in the dark isn't going to help anyone" her face was set in a determined scowl "You suspected Nikola from the start. I could see how uneasy you were since the moment you entered the shop" 

Taken aback, Jon answered hesitantly "I got a feeling that something was wrong… didn't you?" He said, grimacing. His wrists really hurt. Maybe trying to slip out hadn't been a good idea.

"Is that why you ran? Did the Force tell you something?" Asked Sasha, not letting the matter drop. Jon exhaled loudly. Force, he was tired.

"No" answered Jon trying to put his feelings into words. He didn't even know how to explain his reaction. He hadn't been thinking at the moment. He just knew. "I saw something" he tried "and I realized that we were in danger" it wasn't a good explanation and judging by Sasha's raised eyebrow she thought the same

"Because you saw something" she said flatly.

"I know it sounds stupid but I–" he tried, somewhat embarrassed. Maybe Sasha did have a point, they were already in danger. Ignorance wouldn't help now "Look, Elias and I are supposed to be looking for a dangerous artifact and I saw Nikola with it" he paused and frowned "Well, I didn't exactly see what it was but I realized that we–" as he talked he noticed that Sasha wasn't listening to him anymore, her eyes unfocused and mouth set in a firm line

"A dark artifact?" She said with an unreadable expression "Like the ones from–"

"The Leitner mission, yes" answered Jon, confused. Sasha didn't answer so he continued, better be specific "This one is a razor. I have read a few statements about it. It's being used to..." Jon trailed off, trying to find his words "remove skin" he said, shifting uncomfortably "and it keeps it intact for… other purposes I am not sure about all the effects of this object but I am not inclined to find out personally" he concluded and then looked at Sasha who seemed startled, her eyes wide. Jon's eyebrows furrowed "What?" He asked. He hadn't expected her to react like this.

"I think I have heard of this before" she said. Jon's heart jumped

"Where!?" He asked, startled. Was there a bigger leak? How did Sasha have access to any part of his investigation? It didn't make sense and it was very worrying. She didn't answer him, just looked away from him in regret, the silence felt crushing to Jon.

"Sasha you need to tell me, it's important" His heart hammered in his chest. She wasn't answering, didn't want to tell him what was happening. What if she was part of this. Could he even trust her? 

"Look, I am risking a lot by telling you about our mission" he tried, feeling betrayed. He had told her what she wanted and now she was hiding things from him. Things that could put the both of them in danger. "You could at least–"

"It's not the same, Jon" Said Sasha rolling her eyes in exasperation. Jon looked at her suspiciously, making Sasha sigh "Just… ask Tim alright?" She said dismissively. This made Jon stop for a moment. What did Tim have to do with that? 

"I will" he promised, determined to find out what was happening.

* * *

Jon sat on the ground, trying to not think too hard about what was coming. After a few hours of trying they had realized that the only thing they could do was wait. He talked with Sasha every once in a while, their conversation light as they tried not to lose all hope.   
Dread filled his gut, making him nauseous and his mind, inspired by dozens of statements, kept providing him with new dreadful possibilities of what could be in store for them.

The sound of footsteps alerted the both of them, making Jon tense. He stood up quickly, looking at Sasha's firm, solemn expression. 

Nikola's face showed the same expression as always. That big, fake smile that gave Jon shivers. 

"Hi! How are you two doing?" They said with that airy, cheerful voice. Jon was sick of it. "Are you ready for the surprise? It's a shame that I'll only–" 

"What do you want now?" He asked Nikola, interrupting them. He would not be playing their game. 

"Really, Archivist" they said, putting their hands on their hips and leaning in, entering Jon's personal space until their noses almost touched "You should learn how to be more polite, especially to me! I even let you keep your little toy!" They said, pointing to the holocron in his belt and shaking their head. Jon ignored the theatrics and concentrated. He had thought about doing this. It was now or never. He made eye contact with Nikola's eyes and spoke.

"What are you planning?" He asked, aided by the Force. This was their only chance of getting any useful information but, just when it seemed to be working and Nikola's mouth opened they tilted their head, surprised

"What was that?" They asked coldly. The smile was still present but the fake cheer in their voice had faded.

"Ah… I uhm…" he said, folding into himself, not being able to form any coherent words as Nikola loomed over him.

"I don't like that, archivist!" They said, face twitching for an instant. Jon tried to retreat further. His back made contact with the wall and Jon couldn't suppress a small sound of distress.

"Do you know the name Daniel Stoker?" Asked Sasha suddenly. Nikola's body twisted and in a second they were already in front of Sasha and the cheerfulness was back. Jon's head shot up at that name. Danny Stoker?

"Oh, I think I do! Are you a fan of my work?" They said brightly, voice brimming with pride

Sasha's eyes were filled with hatred as she spoke

"You were the one that killed him. Weren't you?" She asked walking towards them as far as the restraints let her.

"Me? I did nothing of the sort!" They said, raising their hands in a show of innocence "He is still very much alive!" They said happily and Sasha's eyes widened "In fact I think I could show you where he is. Would you like that, little Jedi?" They asked, taking a step towards her. The worst part was Sasha's face. She looked taken aback but curious, like she was going to take Nikola up on their offer. Jon shot up towards them but was stopped short by his restraints who pushed his back as he let out a startled sound of pain. 

"Sasha no–" he tried but Sasha wasn't looking at him, eyes fixed in Nikola

"He is here?" She asked, carefully. Nikola reached towards her with their right hand and Jon simply reacted without thinking.

A loud clang resonated in the room, leaving both Jedi stunned. Everything froze for a moment as Jon looked at Nikola's body. It had crashed against one of the walls and now lay on the floor, adopting an unnatural position, joints bended in unnatural shapes. Their neck was twisted, seemenly broken and Nikola's head was facing him. He could see their empty eyes.  
Jon's stomach dropped. His train of thought felt jumbled. He knew he hadn't thrown Nikola that hard. If he had been capable of that they would have gotten free a lot earlier. Nikola couldn't be dead right? 

He didn't get enough time to think about what he had done because in just an instant Nikola's body started to twist, everything moving to its rightful place again. No, not everything. The head was fixed in place, still facing Jon as Nikola got up like nothing had happened. They walked calmly towards him, saying something as they reached towards his neck and Jon tried to struggle. The hands were locked in place and Jon couldn't breathe. He heard Sasha screaming his name but could only focus on the pain in his neck and the helpless of needing to breathe.

* * *

Jon looked up to the ceiling. Memories crashing down on him as the pain of his injuries returned to him. He looked around, fearfully, scared of seeing Nikola again.   
The image of their twisting body burned in his eyelids but he was alone. The calm brought by that realization dissipated immediately as he realized what that meant. He shot to his feet and his foot collided with something but he ignored immediately focusing on finding Sasha's presence. 

He almost fainted with relief when he sensed her, his eyes filled with tears, his knees bulked. Sasha was still alive. 

He stayed like that for what felt like minutes, his heart still racing until he regained his composure. He still had things to do. His eyes traveled around the room, trying to find the object he had noticed when he woke up. Maybe he could use it to break his cuffs. When he found it his thoughts whirled to a halt and Jon froze, confused. His mind was playing tricks on him right? He extended his hands towards the object in question and lifted it towards him. The weight and shape was familiar and Jon's eyes widened. He felt stunned. Why was his lightsaber here?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, Jon didn't get a new op telekinesis power. Nikola's body is just like that. 
> 
> Now it's time of how did Jon's lightsaber got there? Who helped Jon? The winner will get a prize! (The prize will be me saying congratulations to them) 
> 
> I wasn't planning on Jon doing that to his wrist but then I realized that this is Mr let's chop of my finger... Oh wait it isn't working... Let's try again, and again, and again, and again. Maybe a rib will work?
> 
> Now Irl news I got my Pcr (for corona) and it came back negative so I was finally able to get in the mood for some writing!   
> Because the truth is that I've been a little bummed out lately about some things regarding this story but I have officially gotten over them!


	19. 12 (part 5)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not nice times here actually

Jon felt clumsy and unbalanced as he walked, trying to force himself to be as quiet as possible, feeling like his heart was going to burst from his chest. Every few seconds he looked behind him, nervous.

He knew that this was the only chance they had to escape. Nikola didn't seem like the merciful sort and he really didn't want to find out what would happen to him if he was caught. Jon felt himself smile humorlessly at that. Well, actually, he could make a pretty good guess, he had seen a few examples of what exactly that artifact could do. He exhaled tiredly. At least this time he was informed before encountering horrible mortal peril and the place seemed to be kept in better condition, the building was unremarkable but well maintained. Maybe he could even convince Nikola to give him a statement.

After reaching another corner he stopped and pressed himself to the wall, lightsaber in hand but still not ignited. He closed his eyes and focused, trying to sense if anyone was near, trying to find Sasha's presence. There was nothing. 

Jon's shoulders slumped and he grit his teeth, frustrated and tried to ignore the uncomfortable feeling of dread coiling in his gut. This was taking too long and he still didn't know where she was or if they would actually be able to escape together. 

He hated this situation, everything had gone wrong from the beginning. He felt lost and disoriented. There were so many things happening that he didn't understand. 

Jon ran a hand through his hair, grounding himself. Trying to keep his thoughts from spiraling out of control. He had to go one step at a time. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about how Nikola knew about the mission or where exactly his weapon came from. He had to focus. 

With a mute sigh he straightened his posture. As long as he was still free he had to get to Sasha. That was the only thing he had to think about.

Just when he was about to continue his search something made him stop. Jon frowned, confused. From somewhere inside the building he could hear music. It sounded familiar but it was too faint to guess what exactly it was.

Without thinking he moved, following the sound. 

A few minutes passed while Jon walked around the place. He could hear the music clearly now, but still couldn't place it. The whole situation was unsettling and Jon hesitated for a moment, his steps slowing. Should he really be doing this? It could be a trap to draw him out but he couldn't keep pacing around the building without aim either. Maybe, if he took Nikola by surprise, he could have a chance to take them out. They didn't know Jon was armed after all.

Then he felt it. Fear engulfed him, like a tidal wave, coming from further into the building, the same direction as the music. It was strong, dozens of people screaming without a voice in deep terror. Jon raised his hands to his head and stumbled, having to lean against the wall to avoid falling to the floor. He blinked rapidly, confused, trying to withstand the sudden onslaught of emotion affecting him. 

Jon let out a shaky breath and closed his eyes, remembering Elias' lessons, trying to find balance. His composure only lasted an instant, however, because just when he was able to calm down and focus he noticed something. 

There was a presence he could recognize in that chorus of suffering. Sasha was there. Jon ran.

There wasn't anything that could have prepared him for what he found when he finally reached his destination. The room was decorated with beautiful, elegant drawings and in the back there was a loud instrument seemingly playing without a performer but Jon didn't focus on this. His eyes were drawn to the occupants of the room, all of them were dressed in the same elegant, colorful clothes soiled with dried blood, standing in silence as a cheerful melody filled the place on the ground laid perfect patches of skin. Jon felt like he was going to drown in the fear permeating the place. He focused only on one person there. Despite her new appearance he recognized her instantly. Her presence was unmistakable, even faded as it was.

His head spun and Jon felt sick. He took a step towards her, hesitantly. His hands were shaking "Sasha? I–is that you?" He asked, voice trembling. Lifting a hand towards her but stopping short. He couldn't touch her. It would be painful, she was injured. But Sasha didn't move, still looking ahead, eyes unfocused and something inside Jon shattered.

"I'm sorry I didn't– please?" He begged, forgetting his earlier caution and taking Sasha's hand in his. The feeling was so wrong. Her hand wet and soft against his, the texture so different from what it should be, blood and muscle instead of skin. He didn't want to look at it. He could already see it in her face "Say something?" He tugged at her hand, trying to make her react "We need to leave" he managed between uneven breaths, from the back of his mind he recalled his master lecturing about breathing techniques but he was too focused on trying not to heave as bile rose up to his throat to remember "I have to take you to the healers" they should be able to do something right? He had to take her to the ship. He pulled, expecting some resistance but instead Sasha moved easily, without any tension and that was so much worse.

He was so distracted trying to get Sasha to safety that he didn't notice Nikola's presence behind him until they spoke to him.

"Oh, I didn't expect to see you here Archivist. How did you get out?" They said, making him jump. He still didn't release Sasha's hand.

"What did you do to her?" He asked, voice tight with anger, his chest burning with hatred. Nikola just looked at him for a moment. Then, they laughed. Jon grit his teeth.

"It's funny, she reacted the same way when I showed her her friend" they said, delighted. Jon was done.

"Answer the damn question" he spat. While Nikola just looked at him, smiling. It didn't seem like they had noticed he was armed. Good. 

"I think it's obvious. Isn't it Archivist?" said Nikola, taking a step towards them. Jon just glared. "I needed some new material and she was useless to me anyway"

"For what?" He shouted, eyes stinging. He noticed how his grip on Sasha's hand had tightened and he released it, ashamed. He tried to ignore the stickiness he felt in it now "I thought you said we were more useful to you alive, that you didn't want to kill us" before Nikola could answer Jon continued, furious, his voice getting progressively louder with emotion "Why are you doing this? What is your goal Nikola?"

"Well, it's not like she's dead silly! Look at her!" They gestured theatrically towards Sasha with a twist of their hand. Jon's nails dug in his palm. They were mocking her "And as for why I am preparing this spectacle… The same reason as you!" They concluded. Jon, who had been getting ready to attack simply gaped, baffled.

"I– What?" He asked, confused. Nikola's smile only got wider with his reaction.

"Oh! That's great!" They exclaimed with a laugh "You don't know anything! Do you? You don't know what you are doing! How delightful!" They said, clasping their hands together. Jon dropped his gaze.

"Shut up" he said, his voice low. Nikola was just trying to confuse him.

"Should I help you then Archivist? Tell you all about the razor? Or would you prefer if I dressed up as one of them? I could give you a show" they tried. Jon's left hand found his weapon. He had to be fast. He would do this as cleanly as possible. 

"Oh I know! I could be your little friend! Sasha right? Would you like to talk to her again Archivist?" They asked, reaching for something on the ground. It was skin. Sasha's skin. Jon saw red

"Shut up!" He shouted, igniting his weapon. 

Jon wasn't the best duelist. That was something expected, something he accepted but his weapon was dangerous and he knew how to use it. Nikola didn't have time to react.  
Jon attacked blindly, without thinking and Nikola managed to stab him with the only weapon at hand. When the metal razor dug into his skin Jon screamed, terrified and reflexively cut Nikola's arm, hand still clinging to the artifact. Then the hand started moving, making Jon jump backwards. 

Horrified, he looked at the cuts he had made. Instead of the burned flesh he was expecting stood a mess of broken circuits. 

With a shout, Jon cut again, severing the droids legs, watching with horror as they still moved, separated from the body. Nikola's arms twitched uncontrollably and Jon swallowed heavily, taking a step backwards and lifting the razor from the ground, hiding it in his cloak. Still, nothing else happened. He couldn't help but watch for a moment, absorbed by the sight, absolutely terrified of what could be next. Then he took a deep, shaky breath and turned around with a sob.

Sasha hadn't moved during the fight, like the rest of the occupants of this room she seemed deaf to the world so he didn't talk to her while he approached, didn't apologize when he had to move her. It wouldn't do any good. It would be just a waste of time. All of that could wait until she was better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :/
> 
> Ok, I did warn y'all
> 
> But speaking of other things I hope I didn't write Jon too out of character. I mean... This is in line with Jon's reaction to Sasha's canon death, when he went to buy an axe to destroy the table and then revealed himself to the not them when it insulted Sasha by shouting at them to shut up. This isn't even touching s5 stuff so I don't think this is too farfetched? Specially when this is Jedi Jon actually trained in combat. But I want to make this fic as in character as possible so I accept any type of criticism... Speaking of that... Please leave a comment? Even if it's just a "nice" or a ":)" it really helps with motivation! 
> 
> Now for the last chapter question! No one guessed correctly so I hope you like the eventual reveal!


	20. 12 (part 6)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Conclusion of this arc

Jon sat on the floor of an abandoned building. His hands trembled but the grip on his weapon was firm while he waited. Sasha's limp form laid further into the room, unresponsive.

They had managed to leave the building without much trouble but Jon hadn't been able to find the ship. Nikola had moved them when they were unconscious and Jon didn't have a map anymore. After exhausting himself trying to get back and getting as much distance as possible from the building while carrying Sasha's weight on his back he decided it would be better to rest than collapse on the streets.

It had taken him too long to figure out what was happening. He wasn't a trained healer after all, but Sasha's condition had been worse than he had thought. He had been able to feel her still but her presence was wrong.

It had been an accident, but it made sense now that he thought about it. No one could survive injuries like those. It had been hopeless from the beginning. 

It still was his fault.

He had tried to help her at first, when he realized she wasn't breathing. That, he knew how to do. One hand over the other and pressing down on her chest. 30 compressions and two rescue breaths then repeat and repeat and repeat.

The only thing he had accomplished had been tiring himself out.

The artifact had been doing more than keeping her alive despite the blood loss and the lack of breathing. It had been affecting her mind. Repressing everything except that deep, terrible fear. Going back to Coruscant wasn't an option and he had felt that if he waited for too long he could be putting her at risk, like he was running out of time. Her pulse had been non-existent.

That was why he broke the razor and, the moment he did, Sasha's fear vanished, along with everything else and Jon was alone.

* * *

Someone was coming and Jon could hear their footsteps. He hadn't been paying attention to his surroundings and now it was too late to try running. Without thinking, Jon charged, filled with so many terrible emotions, feeling like his heart was going to burst from his chest, trying to take whoever just crossed the door by surprise and end this. Instead, his weapon was effortlessly deflected and Jon froze, trying to stay still as a lightsaber rested barely a millimeter away from his throat. 

"That is not the reception I was expecting" said the calm voice of Elias Bouchard as he looked at Jon, eyes firm and serious and his expression unreadable. He didn't look worse for wear than the last time he had seen him. 

"Master" he said softly, knees going weak. His mind was a mixture of emotions, relief mixed with betrayal and anger making his head spin.

Elias' frame relaxed minutely and he finally put down his weapon. 

"If you are quite done I think it's time for you to explain exactly what you've been doing" he said, annoyed, raising an eyebrow at Jon's appearance. He had to make quite the picture, bruised wrists and clothes caked with dried blood. Elias walked further into the room "Where is Padawan James?" He asked, making Jon swallow hard.

"She is dead" he said. The answer came out unsteady and he could feel his body shaking. His master didn't answer him, just made a soft sound of surprise and Jon's fists clenched in anger.

"Where were you?" He said with as much strength as he could muster, glaring at the man that had left them to die.

His master stayed calm and the urge to shout became almost unbearable. He wanted Elias to explain, to react, to do something but the man simply sighed

"Don't you think you have some things to tell me first?" He asked

"No, you were supposed to be leading the mission. Where were you Elias!?" He shouted, taking a step towards his master, eyes blazing. Elias didn't move but his frame became more tense and he lifted his chin.

"Looking for you" he answered with a glare of his own "You have been missing for almost a full day and if what you told me is true instead of acting like an untrained youngling you should be telling me what happened" he accused, voice hard.  
Jon looked away and conceded. 

"There was someone using the artifact We were captured and Sasha…" his words faltered "she didn't make it" he didn't mention how he had dragged her out here, her mind trapped by the artifact. He shook his head. It wasn't the time to think about that "you should have been with us. This wasn't supposed to happen if you had just–"

Elias, still keeping his composure, interrupted him.

"Jon, I am not omniscient" he said, exasperated "I can't really predict these things" he paused for a moment, voice becoming soft "This situation is very… unfortunate but there isn't really much we can do about it now" he said. Jon wasn't placated.

"I wasn't supposed to be alone with her" he hadn't been able to handle it. Even if he didn't like it he was still a Padawan. He couldn't handle missions like these. If it had been Daisy instead of him Sasha would have gotten out. He felt angry tears run down his cheeks "there should have been a master with us, I–"

"Padawan James was the one that insisted" said Elias, cutting him off again "and this was, in theory, a perfectly safe mission someone with all her experience should have been able to handle. Me being there would have changed nothing, Jon. Again, my specialization is research, not combat"

"So what you are saying is that you are useless" he spat, not caring about the consequences this would have. Elias frowned and opened his mouth. Jon didn't let him talk "No, you don't get to–to do that. It wasn't just today. You have been using me. Making me do all your work, go to these missions alone" he was getting louder now, losing control and he had to pause sometimes, the trembling in his voice made speaking harder. He didn't care "It isn't right. If you had just come then Sasha–"

"I understand that you are feeling guilty but don't turn the blame on me because of that. That isn't the Jedi way" Said Elias placidly, words cutting through Jon's anger like a escapel, leaving him with the sorrow and the guilt. He felt exposed as his master put his hand on Jon's shoulder and squeezed gently, knowing eyes meeting Jon's

"What? I don't–" he said hurriedly, trying to deny everything, shaking his head. This wasn't right. It wasn't fair.

Elias lip's formed a small, pitying smile and his gaze softened. Jon felt sick.

"It is very normal to feel that way. She was your mission partner and, if I am not mistaken, a friend also. Losing someone like this can be hard. I know what you must be thinking right now. That if you had done more, been better this wouldn't have happened" he said, gently. Jon's breath caught. "but you need to let these feelings go, Jon. This isn't the first time it's happened and it won't be the last but you have to get through this. You are just… lashing out. Trying to find someone else to be angry at" he concluded with a dismissive gesture.  
He frowned, looking thoughtful for a moment "But I must admit that I didn't know you were unhappy with our working arrangement. If you really feel that way we can talk about it in Coruscant. I don't think now is the best time for that" he said, eyes darting around the room. Jon flinched.

Jon had never actually complained about it before had he? Just followed along whatever Elias said. Maybe it really was just him. He had the habit of ruining everything after all. 

Still, there was something in the back of his mind. He didn't know where Nikola had gotten the information wrong, who was trying to sabotage the investigation. He gulped, nervously. No, not just sabotaging it. Nikola knowing who to expect and when wasn't just the work of someone trying to slow him down or hiding information from him. A chill ran through his spine. This had been a murder attempt. 

He couldn't trust Elias, or anyone else for that matter, until he discovered who was behind all of this. 

Elias was still looking at him and Jon tried not to look suspicious, his heart was racing.

"Anything else you want to tell me before we leave?" he said. And, for a moment Jon had the terrifying thought that his master knew what he was thinking but the moment passed and Elias looked away. "Alright then, let's go we will call someone to… deal with this"

Jon let himself be led away from the room, Elias hand was on his back, pushing him forward. Jon's legs moved mechanically. 

"It is not your fault Jon. I am sure that you did all you could" Elias said, a gentle smile clear in his voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just didn't want to drag Sasha's death out. I wanted to show the artifact's intended effects and that's why I didn't just end things last chapter so sorry if it seems rushed but I am not big on situations like those, specially since I actually do like Sasha so that's it. 
> 
> Clarifications on Sasha's death because I don't think I explained it clearly (Jon isn't in the right frame of mind to think about it) but Sasha was dead from the moment she received those kinds of injuries and was just trapped s5 fearpocalypse style in a fear loop until Jon, thinking that he was saving her, broke the razor. Even if he had done it somewhere she could receive medical attention it wouldn't have make a difference because that's just not something you can survive. 
> 
> At least she wasn't erased from existence this time(?)
> 
> Also Elias must be really freaking out and surprised by this huh? He's taking it awfully well


	21. Interlude 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone's musings

Adapting had been… strange. A new perspective with so many new things to explore, so many things to use.

It hadn't been on purpose but it was a perfect opportunity. The Archivist seemed so vulnerable now, so new to everything.  
He had been trapped by Nikola, caught up in that ridiculous mess and he would have died if no-one had intervened and that would have been a shame.

It hadn't been out of kindness or camaraderie or anything like that. Yes, to a certain extent there was some fondness towards Jon, if it could be even called that, but that feeling was useless and thus ignored. Things are so much better when you distance yourself from that and try to have fun. Maybe Jon could discover it too. That would certainly make things easier. 

No, Jon had been freed simply because his death would have been a waste. Just a return to the status quo. Him surviving could be far more interesting. It was cruel perhaps but monsters, Sith, were never known for their kindness.

There had been ignorance before, created by a stupid, flawed view of the world but now the possibilities were endless and if Magnus' little experiment succeeded… Well, that would benefit everyone, really. And if it didn't it still would be enjoyable to see everything fall apart. Judging by these last few months, the Archivist seemed like he would be very fun to play with after all. 

Change was coming to the Galaxy one way or another and managing to stay at the winner's side was just the smart decision. It wasn't going to be difficult, not at all. The Archivist was so confused already, surrounded by so many lies and he needed an ally, someone he could trust. Providing that would be delightful.

The only thing left to do was to have fun and that was going to be very easy too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really, really short chapter but the less you explain about this character the more fun they are so that's why.
> 
> Also loved last episode. I am so glad I don't have to rewrite anything to adapt it to canon...


	22. 11 (part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon starts an investigation. We see 2 of the main suspects

The meeting had been completely useless and Jon was trying to keep his expression neutral. He couldn't show Elias his disappointment.

No mention of anyone else besides them knowing about the mission. The Council had decided to treat this like it had been an isolated incident, part of the dangers of being a Jedi. Jon knew better but he needed proof first. No-one would believe the emotional and unstable Padawan. Especially after what happened. They would simply decide that he had been too affected by the mission. They could remove him from the investigation. He couldn't let that happen. Jon already felt trapped. Being denied even that would be too much for him.

This had to be planned. Jon knew it with frightening certainty. Someone was after him and it was someone close to him.

He still didn't have any leads but he had managed to discard some possibilities.

Georgie wasn't the culprit. It just didn't make any sense.

Melanie had been at the outer Rim for a month now and still hadn't returned. It could be a ploy to try to assuage his suspicions but that had been a direct assignment so, unless the Council was in on it too, she had to be innocent. Jon felt some tension leave his frame. That was another reason why Georgie couldn't be the culprit. Melanie would have noticed.

Basira was another possibility that didn't quite fit. If she was the saboteur she wouldn't have revealed herself just for this. She had access to a lot of classified information and she was smart. An investment like that wouldn't be risked to end his life.

Finally, he could also discard Daisy. It simply wasn't her style. If she wanted to get rid of him he would already be dead, with a lightsaber through his gut.

That left him with Tim who had some connection to Nikola, Martin and...

"That went better than I expected" said Elias brightly as Jon felt a hand settle on his shoulder. He whirled around, startled and Elias simply smiled at him softly. 

The man seemed different lately, happier. Maybe as an attempt to cheer him up. Or maybe, thought Jon biting the inside of his cheek, it was because he was hiding something. He gave his master a look, trying to seem nonchalant. 

"You handled yourself very well despite the circumstances" said Elias tilting his head "I was afraid you would make the situation… more difficult than it needed to be" he clarified. Jon's lips thinned in displeasure.

"You told me to let you handle it" he answered slowly.

Elias hummed in agreement and Jon's eyes narrowed. Yes. Elias had to be one of the suspects. He had been close to Gertrude and Jon still didn't know him very well. There could be some hidden motivation behind his actions. 

"I was concerned, that is all" tried Elias, calmly "You have been very erratic since we've arrived at Coruscant. That is hardly the behavior you want to show the Council is it?" He asked, his eyes boring deeply into Jon. He knew.

Jon's eyes widened in surprise and felt his heart accelerate. He thought he had been subtle. He had managed not to alert the Council, after all. Elias didn't move, seemly amused, with a knowing glint in his eyes.

"Oh, don't look at me like that. I would be a terrible master if I didn't notice, right?" 

"Where are you going with this?" He said warily and resisted the urge to take a step back. If it was Elias and he knew Jon suspected him… then it would be over.

"I know we are still working on your self control and even if this situation is... exceptional, for lack of a better word" he said, looking at him with pity. Jon felt his body relax. He didn't suspect him, just thought he was grieving "I can't allow you to indulge in this kind of behavior. I understand that it will take you some time to settle despite my best efforts but, if this gets out of hand I will be forced to relieve you from your duties" he concluded.

"What? I–I can't just stop, I–" tried Jon, alarmed. Elias raised his hand, cutting him off.

"Only if you force my hand" he said firmly. His tone didn't leave any room for argument and Jon's mouth closed shut.  
Seeing his expression Elias sighed.

"Why don't you try to rest? Talk to your friends, have some fun. It has been a while since you've sparred with Knight Tonner. Hasn't it? I am sure she will be thrilled"

* * *

It had been a spur of the moment decision. He had been planning on getting some information about Martin Blackwood but this wasn't the right way to do it. It was too big of a risk.

He still had done it.

Searching someone's personal belongings was unacceptable but the threat was too big. He could still see it every time he closed his eyes. Nikola's handiwork. Sasha.

Jon didn't want to die. 

Now, however, he was starting to regret that decision. Just as Jon left the corridors reserved for the Temple workers he saw the man in question approaching. 

Jon felt his breath catch and looked away, trying to seem as inconspicuous as possible. Maybe Martin wouldn't notice him if he was able to–

"Oh, hello Jon. I didn't expect to see you here" he greeted, walking up to him with a strange expression on his face. 

Jon froze like a deer in the headlights and clutched his bag. It felt very heavy on his hands now but he resisted the urge to try to hide it. It would only make him look more suspicious.

"You don't have to worry. I was just leaving" said Jon hurriedly, starting to walk away fast. Martin didn't let him.

"No, I am actually glad to see you" he said "I– I know that being a Jedi is dangerous but I never expected…" he shook his head. His voice was thick with sadness and Jon's chest tightened "I am glad to see that you are alright Jon" He concluded, looking at Jon very intensely.

"Well, thank you" tried Jon, feeling awkward. He didn't know how exactly to respond. They stayed there for a moment, in silence until Jon shifted uncomfortably. This was probably the best time to go.

Something must have shown in his face, however, because, as he braced himself to leave Martin's hand shot forward, stopping short before touching Jon in a desperate attempt to get him to stay.

"Please, don't leave yet. I know that you don't like me very much" he said with a strange smile on his face. And this was just ridiculous, Martin the one that felt uncomfortable around him not Jon. Was he trying to confuse him? Still, Martin continued "but I wanted to say that I am here for you okay? If you ever need to talk"

He looked so sincere, eyes shining with unshed tears and expression determined. Soft but firm. Jon couldn't feel any deceit from him. He seemed like he just wanted to help him. 

Jon tried to talk but his voice didn't come out. He had to clear his throat before answering.

"I am fine. I appreciate what you are trying to do Martin but that is not really appropriate" he conceded with a tilt of his head.

Whatever Martin was expecting, it wasn't that. He blinked a few times, taken aback

"What?" He asked bewildered, a nervous laugh scaping from his lips.

This, Jon knew how to deal with. He sighed deeply, remembering the last time he had this conversation with someone. It had been Tim right? Force, he really hoped Martin wouldn't make a big deal out of it. He needed to leave. Martin was still a suspect.

"Like you said I am a Jedi. Dwell in the past, grieve. It's not something we are allowed to do. It's not the Jedi way" he said slowly

Martin spluttered, indignant and Jon felt a bit amused despite himself "T–That's stupid! You– whatever else you are you are still a person" he was gesticulating widely now "You have feelings. You can't be faulted for that!"

Jon grimaced. Outsiders never really understood. It wasn't that simple, not for him. 

"It's not how things work here Martin" he clarified. 

Martin didn't answer now, just looked at him with such pity. It made Jon feel sick.

He left

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmmm....
> 
> Elias shares a name with the main villain of tma but Martin seems to care about Jon's wellbeing and that's pretty sus. Georgie clearly did trash.
> 
> Jon: "It could be anyone. None of my friends are free from suspicion. I suspect everyone equally"
> 
> Jon's brain: "Your notes about Georgie's alibi just say 'oh God please God no, it can't be her so it's not' "
> 
> Jon: "I suspect everyone equally"
> 
> Jon is kinda... Biased. Yes, the reason for Georgie to be out of paranoia town is because every time Jon thinks about her being the possible villain he kinda breaks down but I think it makes sense. He is a very emotional little dude and this Jon has been living with almost everyone in the fic for YEARS and he gets really attached to people so it's really hitting him hard the realization that maybe someone wants to hurt him. We will see more of this later. He will get worse but at least he has a very thoughtful master.
> 
> I wanted to add Tim but I couldn't this week and I wanted to get this out already. College has really been intense lately and it will only get worse until the exams so I can't promise a lot of updates.
> 
> Oh look it's s2 Jon! But with Jedi shenanigans


	23. 11 (part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isn't it weird when you are talking with someone and both of you are having completely different conversations? This happens twice in the chapter

"Tim I wasn't expecting you" Said Jon, trying to hide his startlement. He had been too immersed in his work and didn't even notice the man approaching until he was opening his door. It was worrying. He couldn't afford that anymore.

"Jon, you look like shit" said Tim cheerfully. He was leaning on the metallic door, a small, sharp smile on his face.

Jon frowned, offended and opened his mouth to retort. The last few weeks had been hard. He hadn't slept much and it wasn't like Tim looked much better. Behind his easy demeanor Jon could see the underlying tension, could feel Tim's anger and despair. Something made Jon shift uncomfortably at the sight. The silence extended for a moment while the words died in his throat

"I've been... very busy" he answered simply. Tim snorted

"Yeah. Of course you have" he said, completely unsurprised.  
Tim moved then, walked further into the room, getting too close for comfort. Jon tried to hide most of the files as he approached. Hurriedly putting some of them away as he tried not to take his eyes off him. Tim didn't seem to notice.

"Daisy wanted to talk to you so I volunteered to drag your ass out of here. Seemed like it was important" he explained.

A few seconds passed and Jon felt his heart accelerate. Tim wasn't leaving and looked at him intently. He wanted something else. With increasing dread Jon noticed how Tim was positioned between him and the door and that he wasn't smiling anymore.

"I see." Jon said. His throat felt dry. Then, Tim's shoulders slumped and he sighed.

"I know that we haven't seen each other in a while but… I guess I wanted to talk to someone" he said. He looked so vulnerable now. Jon felt like his chest was being crushed. Maybe it would have been better if Tim had attacked him, after all "I know that it must be very hard on you too. Force, you two grew up together. I just…"

"Stop, please" interrupted Jon.

"What?" Asked Tim, surprised. Jon braced himself and looked away from him. His breathing felt shallow.

"I have a lot of work to do Tim. I will talk to Daisy but I can't..." He trailed off, not finishing the sentence, waiting for Tim to interrupt him. But Tim didn't. Instead, he looked at him like he had been slapped and his back straightened.

"Of course. I should have expected this" he said, his eyes dark "We are friends, Jon. We've known each other for years. Is your pride really more important than that? Than Sasha?" He asked, louder now. 

Jon wrapped his arms around him, trying to make himself as small as possible.

"Why me?" He whispered. 

"I thought that you at least would understand. I expected it from Basira. But really? Do you just... not care?" He asked. His tone was cold

"Tim, I–" tried Jon. Tim cut him off.

"No, Jon. You don't get to do that. We've worried about you for months and you didn't talk to anyone. Just hid inside your office. Maybe if you had just talked to her–" Tim shook his head "Even after what happened you are still acting like this.  
I've tried to understand it, you know?" He asked, his voice filled with hurt. He didn't stop, getting angrier by the moment "These past few weeks I waited for you to do something. To talk to us. To anyone. But I guess you are just a selfish bastard and this damn archive and your status are more important to you than us" he said.

Then he waited, looking at Jon, waiting for him to respond. To do something.

Jon didn't answer, didn't even meet Tim's eyes. He couldn't afford to trust anyone. Not now. His feelings couldn't get in the way of his investigation. Sasha was dead. He couldn't do anything about that now. He needed to let go and focus. He was in danger. That was the priority. 

It was getting harder to breathe.

Seeing that Jon wasn't going to talk Tim scoffed.

"Well, congratulations. I am sure you are making the Order proud" he concluded and then, without giving Jon the chance to protest, to say something he left. His steps echoing in the empty archives.

* * *

Jon walked into the room, feeling hesitant and cleared his throat politely to gain the attention of the woman standing further inside, her back turned towards him as she spoke with someone Jon didn't recognize.

"Ah, Daisy. Hello" he said. He hadn't seen her in a while. Not since before Yaigry. She looked fine. Jon could recognize the satisfied smile adorning her face and her posture was relaxed. She must have gotten back from a good mission.

"Tim told me that you wanted to see me?" He continued, nervously. The other Jedi didn't seem offended by his interruption. They shared a silent look with Daisy before simply leaving without another word.

"I did" she said, sobering up. She gave him a piercing look. She had always been a very intense person and the relaxed silence they usually shared was now filled with tension, increasing the tightness Jon felt in his chest. He knew that Daisy had to be innocent. And yet, his mind still screamed at him. Telling him that he was in danger.

When was the last time he had felt at ease inside the Temple?

"What do you want?" He asked, warily.

"We searched the planet. Found the victims" she said, calmly "I never wanted you to deal with any of that. Should have done something sooner" 

Jon looked at her, searching her expression for any sign of deceit. She met his gaze firmly.

"I am not going to force you to tell me anything. It wouldn't be fair but we all know that something's up and it's been getting worse lately, hasn't it? It's not just Sasha" she said, her eyes boring deeply into him. It wasn't really a question. Jon flinched

"I don't know who I can trust. Something is wrong here and I know someone is behind all of this. I can't–" he confessed, trying to find his words.

Daisy's eyes narrowed but, after a moment her expression softened and she took a tentative step back.

"You are afraid of us" she concluded. Jon looked away. He couldn't meet her eyes

"I understand" said Daisy. Jon's head shot up in surprise. She believed him? 

"Y-you do?" He tried, his voice barely above a whisper.

She nodded in confirmation but, instead of the hard resolve Jon was expecting what he found in Daisy's expression was regret and resignation

"I am sorry. I don't think I can help you with that. Might make it worse" she said. Then shook her head "That's not what I wanted to talk about, anyway" she breathed deeply and then the familiarity was gone "Callum Brodie. You did a mission with him right?" She asked in a professional, detached voice.

Jon blinked slowly, confused by the abrupt change.

He recognized the name. Recalled the very first mission he had taken with Elias and the cold, unforgivable darkness of the frozen planet. 

He shivered.

"Yeah, with him and his master his name was uhm…" 

"Not important" said Daisy "After the mission, did he seem different?" 

He raised his eyebrow, surprised. This was not what he had expected but, judging by Daisy's sharp look it had to be important.

"I don't think so" he said carefully "I didn't really see him much after it. I wasn't really… in the best shape. I went directly to the healers afterwards" he trailed off. Then his eyes widened in alarm "Did something happen to him?"

Daisy's gave him a blank look.

"His master died yesterday. Lightsaber injury. Brodie went missing around the same time" she explained. Jon's heart sunk

"What!? That's–" he couldn't find the words. Master Bilham had been kind to him, a good man. Now he was dead and his Padawan gone.  
Like Knight Richardson, like Jon's master, like Sasha… 

Seeing his expression, Daisy sighed.

"I can't tell you more than this but you know I will be here if you need anything, right? Even if it's just company" she said

Jon took a step back. 

"I have work to do"

She didn't seem surprised by this and nodded.

"Yeah, of course"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jon: "hey, maybe I can trust Daisy. It can't be her right? Maybe I can get some help"
> 
> Daisy: "oh, yeah btw that other master that helped you on that mission died"
> 
> Jon: "I am not talking to Daisy ever again"
> 
> I am thinking that maybe I am putting too much angst in here? But at this point of the story and from Jon's pov there is really not much I can do. I did try to put a bit of Jon is acting so ridiculous it's kind of funny but idk
> 
> Also. Yeah I am still on break, by break I mean only one update every month or less. But I am halfway through the exams so yay?
> 
> New murder mystery!!! Who killed Bilham?  
> (The answer may surprise you!)


	24. 11 (part 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon's investigation continues

Contrary to the popular belief, the members of the Jedi Order weren't forced to stay in the Temple during their free time. 

It wasn't a prison. Anyone could leave whenever they wished as long as they weren't wanted elsewhere. Still, most Jedi preferred to stay inside. Coruscant was too loud and chaotic for many force users. A few of them, however, enjoyed spending time in the city so seeing Elias Bouchard this far away from the Temple taking a walk wasn't extrange or suspicious. On the other hand, the fact that his Padawan was tailing him while trying his best to be unnoticed was both of these things.

Elias' pace was fast but not hurried, matching the other bystanders that filled the streets. He was looking ahead, unbothered, seemingly not knowing he was being followed as he expertly dodged the people in the crowd with the reflexes of a trained Knight. Despite all of this, Jon couldn't help but feel nervous. He knew this was far more risky than his previous expeditions.

Keeping a reasonable distance between him and his master was significantly more difficult than doing the same thing with Tim since he had to keep a wider berth. If he lost his master he could try again some other time but he could absolutely not risk being sensed. With Tim he also had the advantage of vaguely knowing his preferred routes and destinations but he had no idea where Elias was going and it was hard to keep him in sight. The same crowd that helped Jon go unnoticed also threatened to make him lose sight of his master. He was tall for a human but they weren't a big species.

Elias took a few turns and Jon followed cautiously, trying to blend in. No one seemed to be paying much attention. Coruscant was a very big city and everyone had their own problems and too little time to care about others. 

They had left the main street now and Jon found himself surrounded by high end restaurants and people desperate to show off their wealth in every way they could. Elias was slowing down now. He was probably near his destination.

Then, without a warning, Elias stopped and lifted his head, searching for something. 

Had he sensed him? Jon's breath stopped for a moment as his master's eyes passed right over him and then settled in a figure a few meters away. It was a tall, broad human man. He hadn't noticed him before but Jon could recognize him.

Peter Lukas and his master greeted each other amicably and then entered one of the establishments. Even from the street he could hear a band playing and judging by what little of the place he could see from outside Peter Lukas wasn't sparing any expenses today.

Jon bit his lip, hesitant. Should he try to go in too? He looked down at his old, worn out cloak and grimaced. He would stick out too much. As a Jedi he probably wouldn't be forced out of the place but he would be noticed. So, begrudgingly, he waited, trying to appear as inconspicuous as possible.

He spent at least twenty minutes like that. Worried out of his mind but still unable to do anything. What were they talking about? Was Peter Lukas also in on it? It certainly didn't help that he was starting to gain the attention of some bystanders. He could feel someone watching him. 

Then, something touched his shoulder and Jon jumped, startled and whirled around, meeting Peter Lukas's amused stare. It was impossible. When had he left the building? He hadn't seen anything. And where was Elias? 

"Oh! Hello Jon. It's been a while hasn't it?" He said with a huge, cheerful smile. Jon hadn't really paid much attention to the man before but that clearly had been a mistake. 

Peter was a man that smiled a lot. Jon could see it in the shape of his face. In the small wrinkles forming around his eyes. He reached out, searching for something underneath, some hidden motivation. There was nothing. No deceit or hidden intent to harm but he didn't find sincerity either. Just a void. He shivered, confused and unsettled. Was this some kind of shield? 

"I must say…" continued Peter "I didn't expect to see you here. I thought Elias said you were at the temple"

There was silence for a moment and Jon panicked. This could end very badly. 

"Yes. I–" he managed, trying to think of something to say "The Council told me to uhm…" he cleared his throat "Come find him. He is… needed for a mission" 

The man raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms but the smile didn't leave his face.

"Is he now?" He said, unimpressed. 

Jon grit his teeth. He knew he wasn't the best at lying but Peter's attitude rubbed him the wrong way. He didn't have to explain himself to this man. Especially when he didn't know anything about him. Why wouldn't he just leave him alone? 

"Yes, he is" he answered with a sneer "Any problems with that, senator Lukas?" He lifted his chin in defiance, expecting the man to get angry, to retaliate in some way.

Instead Peter laughed and pat Jon's back, almost making him lose balance. It was a loud laugh, almost exaggerated. Jon looked at him bewildered.

"Of course not!" He said, jovially "I just thought you Jedi at least knew how to use a comlink and I don't remember him getting any calls"

Jon swallowed nervously and tried to regain his footing. 

"Well I… came here in person because it wasn't urgent and I wanted to get some fresh air" he said, managing to keep a dry, steady voice as he attempted to satisfy Peter's curiosity and end the conversation. He couldn't lose an entire day of his investigation just because one obnoxious man was feeling lonely.

Sadly, it didn't seem like Jon's lucky day. The hand that had previously been on his back wrapped around his shoulders and, after a moment of shock, Jon was being maneuvered towards one of the establishments.

"Oh! Then you can stay for a moment. I wanted to talk to you about something" said Peter cheerfully, ignoring Jon's spluttering

"That is really not necessary. I–" he protested, trying to shrug him off to no avail. 

"Nonsense!" exclaimed the man, cutting him off "You said it wasn't urgent right? If it can wait the half hour of you coming here in person then it can wait a few more minutes" 

Peter looked at him, tilting his head and Jon sighed in defeat. It seemed like Peter wasn't going to let him go today and he needed at least some information on what exactly he and Elias had been talking about. Maybe he could use this to his advantage after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jon... You are commiting so many crimes pls stop... Don't stalk people... It's probably very illegal trying to read a senator's mind... 
> 
> I was going to include Peter's talk with Jon but I really couldn't manage it today so I decided to try that next week and post this now. Maybe I will edit the chapter later to include it(?) or maybe not.
> 
> So!! Irl News!! The semihiatus is over and I will be back to more regular posting times there are talks of returning to lock down so maybe that will change but for now things are back to normal.


	25. 11 (part 4)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon has a very friendly chat with a very friendly man

Peter had chosen a small table, removed from the rest of the customers. They sat in silence for a while. Peter twirled his drink in thought. It was dark and smelled strongly of alcohol.

"I was hoping to have a moment with you Jon" he said, not lifting his gaze from the glass "I enjoyed our talk at the Senate and wanted to see you again but you know Elias. He's so possessive of his Padawan" 

Jon shifted in his chair.

"He is?" He asked, confused. It was a strange thing to say about a Jedi master. Protective, maybe… but possessive? It also wasn't something Jon associated with Elias Bouchard of all people. The man laughed merrily, showing his stark white teeth. He still wasn't looking at Jon.

"Oh, yes, very much so. I don't really see the point but to each their own I suppose" he said with a shrug. Jon's lips thinned. 

"It's nothing against you, of course" he denied, shrugging off Jon's reaction with a dismissive wave of his hand "I thought a Jedi would understand. How pointless all those things are…" 

He trailed off, eyes looking into the distance as he waited for Jon to respond. Jon, unsure of what to say, tilted his head in silent agreement. It couldn't hurt to try to be polite. Maybe it would get him answers faster. 

Peter seemed to find this amusing and grinned, finally looking at Jon. 

"See? That's what I like about you. If Elias wouldn't cut me in half for it I would have liked to make you my personal assistant" he said. Jon blinked, taken aback. He hadn't expected that "I've been looking for one for a while but no one really catches my attention…" 

"What did you want to talk about?" Interrupted Jon.

Peter's smile faltered for a moment and the hand holding his drink froze.

"I have a problem with your master" he said, serious for the first time since he had met him. His eyes fixed on Jon's. "See, Jon. I like to gamble. It's a bad habit of mine but Elias likes to indulge in it with me sometimes" Jon's eyebrows shot up in surprise but he didn't interrupt the man. It was unexpected but not unwelcome. Every piece of information was valuable "Nothing too alarming, don't worry" he said with a dismissive shrug "I have a reputation to maintain in the senate and Elias is a Jedi so it's mostly just for fun. Harmless bets between friends. He is not very good at it but lately he has been having something of a winning streak with a new... toy of his and I don't like that" 

His eyes bored deeply into Jon as he spoke, giving him a chilling look. Jon couldn't sense his anger, not with those shields in place and the senator was smiling still, trying to seem nonchalant but Jon could see it in his eyes.

"I see" managed Jon. 

"Oh, you don't" he said, with a snort. He didn't give Jon time to protest before continuing "I don't want him to win, Jon" he said with a sigh "It could end badly for me but I also don't like interfering with his… investments. It sets a bad precedent and I hate confrontation. I am a pacifist you know? And a wager is a wager"

Jon frowned

"Why are you telling me this?" He asked, finally. 

"Hmm… Maybe not as sharp as Elias says, are you Jonathan?" He mused, giving him a disappointed look. Jon clenched his fist. He was really starting to get tired of the man "I would like to make a wager with you. If you win I will tell you where Elias has been disappearing to and if you lose… well, I am sure you will be able to pay me back" 

Jon spluttered, surprised, raising his voice in alarm

"How did you–" he tried, searching Lukas' face for any sign of deceit. The man was waiting patiently, toying with his drink once again, a knowing smile adorning his lips, raising an eyebrow at him, challenging. 

He had known from the beginning and all this time he had been having fun at Jon's expense. It stung but… he still needed the information. He gritted his teeth.

"How much would I owe you?" He conceded, reluctantly.

"Does it matter?" Asked Peter with a snort. 

Then he pulled out something from his robes. It was a simple, standard dice painted red and blue. The kind of dice used for gambling. He offered it to Jon, who reluctantly extended his hand to take it before he could take it; however, Peter stopped him, putting a hand on his shoulder, gripping it tightly. His hand was cold.

"Don't try to cheat" he said, simply.

Jon swallowed and nodded. It wouldn't be a wise decision. The man knew he was a Jedi and would probably spot him trying to interfere. Besides, credits weren't really a problem for him. The risks were greater than the benefits. 

He chose blue and then threw the dice.

"How lucky…" said Peter, his face set in an unhappy frown, not bothering to hide his displeasure.

Jon hummed, satisfied and smirked.

"So… where is he going?" He asked, voice filled with delight. 

"So impatient!" Said Peter, thin lipped "I think you can wait a few minutes before bailing on me. Can't you?" 

"Yes… I suppose so" conceded Jon reluctantly. Of course it wouldn't be that easy.

"Relax" he said, softly. Then, like something had occurred to him he smiled slowly "Why don't you tell me more about you first? Something more interesting than just work… How have your friends been, Jon?" Jon flinched and Peter, for the first time, took a sip of his drink

* * *

Jon walked back towards the Temple through crowded streets, feeling the cool air gracing his cheeks, with only one thing in his mind. He was never doing that again. 

Peter Lukas was an unpleasant man, too interested in things that weren't any of his business and very determined to waste Jon's time. The whole ordeal had been tiring. Frankly, Jon didn't have the energy to continue the investigation today. He felt exhausted but still hesitant to go back to the Temple. It wasn't like he had anything better to do there, or that anyone would notice his absence… 

Jon draped his robes tighter around himself.

The talk with Peter had bought a few unpleasant things to the forefront of Jon's mind and the thought of having to go back there and deal with anyone made Jon's chest tighten. 

He decided to take the long way back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love that Jon has no idea how close that was... also Peter Lukas is the sorest loser in the history of sore losers
> 
> Peter: "I like gambling :):)"
> 
> Someone else: *wins*
> 
> Peter: "Not like that >:( that's cheating >:("
> 
> Also Jon pls stop taunting avatars... It's bad for your health... 
> 
> Nothing much to say in chapter notes this time, just that I am sorry about the short chapter but at least it's an update (?)


	26. 11 (part 5)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon finally has a chat with a friend he can trust.

Jon swore softly. Another dead end. Today really wasn't going well for him.

His idea of going for a walk had been a mistake.

The streets had started to blur together after a while. He hadn't been paying much attention to where he was going, too caught up in his own thoughts and even welcomed the situation. It was easier to justify to himself why he was taking so long to get back if he had an excuse. One that wasn't the ever increasing dread he had started to feel every time any of his friends approached him.

It wasn't too alarming, of course. The Temple, big as it was, wasn't difficult to find and if he did get lost finding his way back should be easy. Even if he couldn't see anyone around to ask for directions he should be able to at least do that.

Much to his frustration however, it seemed that Jon had found the most confusing place in the entire planet. The streets were narrow and almost labyrinthic, filled with twists and turns and the worst thing about it all was the uniformity. Everything looked the same, to the point where Jon was starting to wonder if he was walking in circles. 

He didn't know how long he had spent trying to find his way back when he found someone a few meters ahead of him.

His first instinct had been approaching them, get some directions he could trust. Then, he noticed who it was and his mind went blank.

It was a woman, dressed in Jedi robes, her hands tucked away behind the folds of the fabric. She was smiling at him.

He was wrong, surely. It couldn't be true.

"Hello Jon" she said, pleasantly. Even her voice was the same but it didn't sound quite right echoing slightly in a way that didn't make sense. 

"W-What? Knight Richardson?" He asked, disbelief clear in his voice as he took a hesitant step forward, his former intentions forgotten. The woman didn't move but Jon felt his heart hammer inside his ribcage when he met her eyes.

How had she gotten out?

Helen hummed, amused. She was closer now and Jon absentmindedly noticed how her smile was just a little too wide.

"I've been going by Helen lately" she clarified, unbothered. 

"How? You… you disappeared I thought…" he swallowed heavily, trying to ignore the lump in his throat "I thought you were gone"

Helen, because it had to be her, he would never be able to forget her face, not when had seen it in his nightmares for so long, nodded patiently.

"I was lost for some time" she said seriously, like it was a perfectly reasonable excuse for being missing for months "But I was able to find my way back" 

"I don't understand…" he said, with a whisper.

The woman didn't answer, just tilted her head, still amused by Jon's reaction, laughing again and Jon shivered.

Something was terribly wrong.

Jon's hand closed around the holocron. It was warm.

"We have to go to the temple" he tried "Everyone thinks you are dead"

"I'm afraid that wouldn't be a good idea" she said, smile faltering.

"Why?" 

"I was able to escape but that place… it changed me" she tried, carefully measuring her words "I am not the Jedi that was trapped there. I can't be Knight Richardson anymore now I am just… Helen"

If Jon had to use words to describe what happened next he would have said that Helen unraveled. One of her hands, previously hidden inside her cloak, reached out towards him and Jon flinched back in surprise but it closed around his arm, twisting and wrapping itself, reaching his shoulder. It felt like a bag filled with sharp rocks.  
This wasn't how they had looked before. This wasn't how they were supposed to look. Flesh simply couldn't be shaped this way. It wasn't supposed to twist and shift like this.  
Then Jon noticed her face, that huge impossible smile resting under vibrant, yellow eyes.

Finally, Jon sensed it. Her presence had changed. He felt light-headed and dizzy. How had he not noticed this before?

"Y-you fell" he stammered, managing to stay on his feet only because of the hand supporting him.

"If I returned to the Temple I would be hunted down and killed, Jon" she reasoned, finally releasing her hold on him. Her hand hovered over him for a moment, making Jon panic but she simply placed it gently on his head before moving away "Please, don't tell anyone about this"

He should run. Go back to the Temple and find someone better for this than him, more experienced. Someone that knew how to deal with a fallen Jedi. It was too dangerous for him and he knew it. He would probably be killed.

He stayed.

"How?" He asked, voice so soft that for a moment he wondered if Helen hadn't heard him. 

Her eyes shone

"You must have noticed how those… artifacts can affect people, Jon" 

His hand tightened around the holocron.

"I should turn you in" he rasped. 

Falling was a choice. Something unjustifiable. She had to be wrong. Jon needed her to be wrong.

He expected her to get angry. To lash out.

He didn't expect her to look so disappointed.

"I thought you would understand, Jon. After I saved you" Her face fell with resignation. 

For a moment Jon froze, confused. Unable to understand what exactly Helen was talking about. Then his mind raced, filled with questions. How had she been there? Why didn't she say anything? Why did she decide to intervene? But what came out was nothing like that.

"Why didn't you help Sasha?" He asked with a sob. That feeling of helplessness he was already acquainted with burned in his chest. 

A distant, rational part of his mind screamed at him to not show his feelings, that he shouldn't be acting like this specially in front of someone fallen but Jon was too tired of listening to it.

His shoulders shook with emotion.

Helen didn't take this opportunity to attack him. 

"I was so lost and confused. I did everything I could" she said softly.

Jon wanted to say more. That it didn't justify what happened to Sasha, that she had been worth more than that but he knew that wouldn't be fair to Helen. It wasn't her fault. Only his. Jon closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He couldn't help Sasha anymore but maybe he could still do something for Helen

"Maybe they can help you" he managed.

Helen didn't answer. Instead, her expression turned hesitant. She crossed her arms, her hands twisting between them, avoiding his gaze

"What?" He asked, confused

"While I was gone… I learned a lot" she said, slowly "The Jedi… They are not what they seem, Jon. Even your friends. They will hurt you"

Jon's heart raced.

"I understand that you still don't trust me but I can help you" she smiled sadly and looked at him intently. She was telling the truth. He could see it in her eyes.  
"I want to be your friend. That's why I am here. You need someone you can trust"

Helen showed Jon his way back and he hid inside his room for the rest of the rotation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Helen: "Mom says it's my turn with the Archivist!"
> 
> Sorry! I know I took my time to update but I just love Helen too much and really took my time to write her because I wanted to do her justice. She is the best.
> 
> Things have been very hectic irl too so maybe instead of once every week I will have to update once every two weeks for a while
> 
> Yes, Jon can't catch a break and a lot has been going on but that is important for this arc!  
> Also I found myself completely unable to proofread this chapter so it's probably filled with mistakes, sorry.


	27. 11 (part 6)

ARCHIVIST

"Alright…" [Sigh]

"My name is Jonathan Sims. I am a Padawan at the Jedi Temple in Coruscant under the tutelage of Elias Bouchard, Jedi Knight" 

"I would have never considered using a holocron for this but my options are… limited and I suspect that someone may be monitoring my communication devices. This was the only secure method I could think of. It's far from ideal since only a force sensitive will be able to access these recordings but, like I said. I don't have many options…"

"The reason I am recording this message is because someone has been leaking sensitive information to… followers of the dark and has almost certainly murdered Gertrude Robinson, whose research is partly being kept inside this holocron along with proof of these crimes and my own investigation on the subject. I urge the person in possession of this device to listen to everything in full"

"I have no way of knowing that this recording will ever reach the hands of someone who will need it or if it will just be lost, maybe even hidden by Knight Robinson's murderer but I still have to try… If I am to die like this I don't want to be just another missing Jedi, another mystery…"

[ARCHIVIST TAKES A DEEP BREATH]]

"Peter Lukas gave me the location of a place my master frecuents a couple of weeks ago. I have been looking into it. It's well hidden, an abandoned building deep inside the lowest parts of Coruscant. There is no reason why he would want to visit this place multiple times every week. I am certain that he is hiding something in here. The place doesn't feel right. I think he may be the murderer..."

"He is not the only suspect, far from it. There are too many people… close to me that could have done it and, after a few conversations with Helen, I have many reasons to believe that the Order itself may not be as trustworthy as I thought. What she said about Basira…"

...

"It's not the time for that" 

[ARCHIVIST CLEARS HIS THROAT]

"I have finally decided to go inside and see exactly what he has been doing but I don't know what to expect. If I have done this right the recording will be automatically displayed the next time someone uses this holocron so whatever happens to me… someone will know"

[DOOR SLIDING OPEN]

"It's… empty"

[FOOTSTEPS ON STONE WALK SLOWLY, ECHOING SLIGHTLY]

[muttering] "This can't be it. Did Peter tell him I was coming?"

[FOOTSTEPS GET FASTER AS THE ARCHIVIST STARTS PACING AROUND THE ROOM]

[clearer voice] "It just seems like an old, empty house. There is nothing here"

[FOOTSTEPS CEASE]

"Wait, what is that? Looks like some kind of trapdoor. I wonder if–"

[with visible effort] "It's… quite heavy"

[THE ARCHIVIST MOVES THE METALLIC COVER]

"It's covered in something. I think it's dirt. There are stairs here. I can't see where they lead. It's very dark"

[FABRIC RUSTLING, FOOTSTEPS DESCENDING THE STAIRS]

"It's very narrow"

[MORE FABRIC RUSTLING]

"I wonder how old this actually is. The walls are really worn down. Maybe Tim would–" [ Pause, then the Archivist sighs]

"Well, it doesn't really matter. Does it?"

[FOOTSTEPS CONTINUE, A QUIET SOUND OF WATER DROPS STARTS]

"I don't know what Elias could be hiding here and it doesn't look like a place he would enjoy either. It has to be important… I can't imagine him coming here otherwise"

"I might have to bring something else with me next time. It's just straight down for now but I can't imagine this going on forever and getting lost in here doesn't sound pleasant–"

[A THUD, THE ARCHIVIST LET'S OUT A SMALL, PAINED PROTEST]

[frustrated, unnerved] "And of course the ceiling is getting lower, Force. They didn't design this with humans in mind. Did they?"

[FOOTSTEPS CONTINUE, NOW SLOWER CHANGING FROM STONE TO MUD, DROPS GET LOUDER]

[THE ARCHIVIST IS SILENT FOR A WHILE THEN A SOUND OF FRUSTRATION]

"How much longer is it going to be?"

[FOOTSTEPS CONTINUE]

"And everything is covered in mud. How did Elias manage to–"

[FOOTSTEPS CEASE. SOUNDS OF THE ARCHIVIST'S BREATHING ALONG WITH THE WATER]

"He didn't come here. Did he? I have to go back"

[AMBIENT SOUNDS GET LOUDER]

[breathless] "What? 

[frightened] "T-There's no way up"

"There's just down. I–"

[STONES GRINDING]

"Oh God"

[DIRT SHIFTING. A MUFFLED SCREAM]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Rusty quill's little funky song*
> 
> Ok, yeah. I know... Script format but this was fun to write and I wanted to try it. It also made this chapter a lot more fluid. I kept getting twisted around with Jon's narration. It was getting very frustrating and it's also a one time thing that I'm hoping has worked fine.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading my disaster au that snowballed from a character analysis! I welcome constructive criticism.  
> I'm extremely new at writing so I'm not sure about what I'm doing also English is not my first language so any help is appreciated. Leave a comment if you like it!


End file.
